Yuki Tsunoda failed to advance past the first part of the qualifying round for the first time since his move to Red Bull, but he primarily blames others for his performance. He criticizes several drivers and is far from satisfied with the communication from his team. The Japanese driver, who ran out of time to complete a second lap, is particularly outspoken.
The gap between Yuki Tsunoda and teammate Max Verstappen was nearly 1.3 seconds in SQ1: not enough to advance to SQ2. The 24-year-old driver does not take much responsibility for this, as evidenced by his comments to F1 TV. “A very intelligent driver just came out of the pit lane and I had to abort my lap,” he says, referring to Haas driver Oliver Bearman, who is not the only one to receive criticism. “There were several cars that were quite in the way during that same lap and that cost me a lot of time. As for the first lap, that was pretty much it. I locked my wheels in the last corner, but to be honest, the lap was already ruined by that car in the first corner. I couldn’t drive a decent lap.”
Poor Communication
He did not get a second chance. The Japanese driver crossed the finish line only after time had already expired. The Red Bull driver was ‘aware’ that it would be tight, but he also criticizes his team. “I did what I could, but what do you want me to do? There was also a car in front of me. The communication was quite poor,” he responds frustratedly.
Tsunoda eventually fell back to the eighteenth place and faces a daunting task. “We are quite far behind, but of course I will do my best. Anything is possible on this circuit. So I remain positive and I will do my best,” he promises.
