AlphaTauri head into this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix trailing Williams by seven points in the battle for P7 in the Constructors’ Championship.
The Italian-based squad had been running in P10 for most of the season. However, points in the United States, Mexico and Brazil moved them up to 8th after sizeable updates were brought to the car and gave the drivers better machinery to work with.
The Japanese driver believes it will be difficult to overhaul Williams in the final round. Nonetheless, he thinks a repeat of the speed they had in Mexico and Brazil could give them an opportunity.
“It’s difficult I would say. It’s not easy, because in theory we have to finish P6. But it’s not impossible.
“I think we’re bringing upgrades here. If we’re able to perform like we showed in Brazil and Mexico, I think it’s still possible.”
At the end of Sunday’s race, Franz Tost will depart his role as team principal of AlphaTauri following a 17-year stint with the Faenza-based squad.
He’s led the team to two victories and five podiums during his long spell as the boss, and he also got to work with the likes of Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo before they moved on to even bigger things at Red Bull Racing.
Speaking about Tost in his media session this afternoon, Tsunoda stated he would not be where he is right now without the Austrian.
Photo Credit: Red Bull Content Pool
“Obviously without Franz, I am not here. He’s definitely given me a lot of advice every race.
“Even in bad moments, in good moments, we shared happiness or sadness.
“He’s always giving the biggest support in the team.”
In his rookie season of 2021, Tsunoda struggled as crashes and spins — as well as a lack of pace compared to teammate Pierre Gasly — left him under severe pressure to keep his seat for the following season.
The Japanese driver credited Tost for continuing to trust and believe in him, helping the 23-year-old to improve in the process.
“He always trusts my talent, my speed, everything. Even in the first half of the season when I was struggling [in my] first year, he was believing that I can do it.
“Without that kind of good backup, I wouldn’t have been able to develop this much as a driver.
“How he treated me in that time was really helpful for me.”
