F1 star Yuki Tsunoda reveals crucial Red Bull error that wrecked his team debut

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Yuki Tsunoda reveals crucial Red Bull error that wrecked his team debut

The Japanese racer endured a debut to forget in front of his home Suzuka crowd

Kevin McKenna

Wednesday 9 April 2025 08:57

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Red Bull Formula 1 star Yuki Tsunoda has lifted the lift on how his race debut for the team was hampered by a significant error.

The 24-year-old made his first appearance for the Milton Keynes-based outfit in front of his home fans at last weekend's Japanese Grand Prix having replaced Liam Lawson, with the Kiwi sent back to Racing Bulls after just two outings.

But it turned out to be a difficult few days for Tsunoda, who failed to make it out of Q2 on Saturday before finishing outside of the points on race day.

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It was predicted that wet weather could play a major part in Sunday's showpiece, but that prospect didn't materialise - much to the frustration of the new man at Red Bull.

Speaking to media post-race, he said: “In terms of setup itself, it was more towards the rain, which didn’t happen, so that was a bit unfortunate.

“I knew it was going to be tough, overtaking, and I was expecting that if the situation, like tyre degradation, was massive.

"It could be a really good situation, but degradation wasn’t even zero."

Tsunoda looks forward to Bahrain test

Despite things not going according to plan in Suzuka, Tsunoda remains optimistic that it won't take long to get to grips with his new car, starting this weekend in Bahrain.

He said: “Everything was not towards me, but at the same time, I learned a lot of things about the car, so I’m excited for the next race.”

Having watched his former Racing Bulls team-mate Lawson axed in brutal fashion after the Chinese GP, Tsunoda knows the pressure is firmly on to prove he is deserving of the opportunity to line up alongside four-time world champion Max Verstappen - having initially been overlooked for the position.

The Dutchman was at his imperious best in Japan, converting a stunning pole into a maiden victory of the campaign, finishing ahead of title rivals Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Verstappen now sits just one point behind Norris in the drivers' standings and is well in contention to land a fifth consecutive championship.

But he will need significant help from Tsunoda over the coming weeks and months if his team is to mount a realistic challenge to McLaren for the constructors' title, who are already 50 points ahead after just three grands prix.

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