Yuki Tsunoda, F1 driver

Tsunoda will be handed a fourth season at the Faenza outfit, while the currently injured Ricciardo will get a full season with the team after his mid-season comeback this summer.AlphaTauri's driver decision had been made more complicated in recent weeks thanks to reserve driver Lawson's impressive performances as Ricciardo's replacement.While the Australian recovers from a broken hand sustained in ...

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While the New Zealander has impressed greatly during his stand-in performances since the Dutch Grand Prix as a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, it is looking unlikely that it has been enough to secure him a full-time F1 ride.With Red Bull already eager to hand Ricciardo a seat at AlphaTauri next season, Lawson's only real hope of getting a 2024 drive was for the squad to choose him over incumbent ...

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The stewards have ruled that the AlphaTauri driver failed to satisfactorily move off the dry racing line through Turn 13 during Q2 while preparing for a push lap.In doing so, he impeded seven-time world champion Hamilton, who subsequently failed to progress into the top 10 shootout and will start 13th.Tsunoda, who ran 14th fastest, will therefore drop provisionally behind Nico Hulkenberg, Zhou ...

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For the first 10 rounds of the season, attention at AlphaTauri was biased towards full-time rookie Nyck de Vries and his struggles to step up to F1 as he drew criticism from Red Bull bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko.The FIA Formula 2 and Formula E champion was sacked after Silverstone to be replaced by eight-time grand prix winner Ricciardo. The Australian generated such media interest ...

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De Vries was dropped by the Faenza team last week in favour of Daniel Ricciardo just 10 races into his rookie season.Tsunoda says he learned a lot from De Vries despite being the more experienced driver in F1 terms, specifically in terms of how detailed feedback can be.The 2013 Rush movie highlighted Lauda’s acute sensitivity to the behaviour of both road and racing cars, and Tsunoda said that ...

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The team submitted eight technical changes to the FIA for the Silverstone weekend.
These are led by a reworked floor with a raised edge, a tweaked diffuser to reduce how much the wake from the rear tyres distorts the airflow and wider engine cover bodywork.
An extra winglet has been added to the rear suspension wishbone and a revised rear and beam wing introduced to reduce drag and improve ...

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De Vries has faced a rough first third of his rookie season, struggling to get on Tsunoda's pace as a lack of consistency has held him back across the first eight races.
He is one of two drivers yet to register points, alongside fellow rookie Logan Sargeant, although that is also partly due to an underperforming AT04.
Pressure on De Vries has already started mounting, with Red Bull advisor ...

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Earlier this month, it was announced that retired four-time F1 world champion Vettel will make his return to the cockpit of grand prix machinery for the showcase event in Germany on 9 September.
He will pilot the Red Bull RB7 - an Adrian Newey-designed car that claimed 12 race wins in addition to securing 18 of the 19 available pole positions - in which he dominated the 2011 season.
For the ...

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Tsunoda had been well-placed to score points in the Monaco Grand Prix last month as he ran ninth with 20 laps to go, but in the final stages of the rain-hit race, he was passed by both McLarens and continued to slip down the order.
He eventually finished in 15th as rookie team-mate Nyck de Vries grabbed 12th.
The Japanese racer noticeably struggled with his brakes, voiced his ...

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On lap 56 of 66 in a round dominated by Red Bull driver Max Verstappen, Alfa Romeo racer Zhou used DRS to challenge Tsunoda for ninth place around the outside into the Turn 1 right-hander.
But as the corner transitioned into Turn 2, Zhou appeared to jink his machine to the left to then take to the escape road before he rejoined the circuit several car lengths behind Tsunoda.
The FIA stewards ...

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Helmut Marko - the advisor to AlphaTauri team owner Red Bull - revealed earlier this week that, contrary to speculation, the Faenza team will not be sold but instead expand its UK presence.
Speaking to Motorsport.com's sister website Formel1.de, Marko explained that the team’s Italian base will remain the main hub of the operation but that the stature of its Bicester outpost, home to its ...

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Tsunoda experienced a tough start to his 2021 maiden campaign marked by crashes and a lack of consistency, which prompted a mid-season change of approach and a move to Faenza to be closer to his Italian team.
The 23-year-old showed the necessary improvement to stay on board for 2022 but says that came at a cost as he opened up about the "contract stress" that made him suffer throughout last ...

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Tsunoda was forced to retire from the Saturday race in Azerbaijan after a strange opening two laps to the sprint.
The Japanese brushed the wall on the opening lap after clashing with team-mate Nyck de Vries and, as he returned to the pits, his right rear tyre flew off the rim, briefly rolling down the track.
Having made it back to the pits for a change of tyres, Tsunoda then faced fresh ...

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Tsunoda started two places ahead de Vries but on the first lap the Dutchman got past him as the pair exited Turn 2.
The Japanese driver then had a look down the outside at Turn 3, but on the exit de Vries took his line and clipped his team-mate’s front wing.
While de Vries continued unscathed Tsunoda lost the left side part of the wing and immediately told the team that he had to ...

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As revealed by Motorsport.com, a loophole has emerged in the new sprint format regulations regarding the usage of tyres in the shootout.
Drivers are obliged to use one set of new medium tyres in SQ1, another new set of mediums in SQ2, and then a set of new softs in SQ3.
The intention was that all teams would have to save those three new sets to use on Saturday.
However the rules as ...

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The Faenza-based team admitted it had missed some of its development targets to start the 2023 season and has been stuck near the back of the grid across the first three races.
After failing to score in the first two rounds, Tsunoda took a solitary point in a chaotic Australian Grand Prix, leaving AlphaTauri alongside Williams at the bottom of the table.
In a tight midfield the ...

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Tsunoda finished 10th in the Australian GP after spending much of the race fighting McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
Through Albert Park's fastest speed trap – at the second intermediate timing point – he was 17th fastest, logging 314.2 km/h compared to the 339.9 km/h of the fastest car, the Red Bull of Sergio Perez.
Speaking after scoring the team's first points of the year in Australia, the ...

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The dynamic in the Italian outfit changes this year as team veteran Pierre Gasly has moved on and been replaced by rookie Nyck de Vries.
While the Dutchman is in his first year, he is older than Tsunoda and brings experience from other categories, as well as the knowledge gained with other F1 teams.
Tost has made it clear that he expects the newcomer to make an impact from the off.
Longer ...

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The Japanese driver is entering his third year with AlphaTauri, but is coming off the back of a fairly disappointing 2022 campaign where he finished in the top ten just four times.
His tally of 12 points left him down in 17th in the overall standings, and it is clear that Tost feels the youngster needs to lift his game in 2023.
Speaking as AlphaTauri unveiled the livery of its new car at an ...

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The scenario that unfolded robbed the AlphaTauri driver of two positions and left him far behind the drivers with whom he should have been fighting.
Following the controversy in last year's Abu Dhabi GP, the FIA decided to automate the system that identified the lapped cars that are eligible to unlap themselves during a safety car period.
In Abu Dhabi last year, only some cars were allowed ...

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The Frenchman is leaving the Faenza-based squad at the end of the season to join Alpine for 2023, and is being replaced by rookie Nyck de Vries.
But having built up a good friendship with Tsunoda during their two years together, he is hopeful that the Japanese youngster can overcome his weaknesses and prove himself a strong asset going forward.
Asked in Mexico if he felt Tsunoda has what it ...

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The pair made contact when Ricciardo made a move on the inside of a tight right-hander as they battled for 11th position on the 51st lap.
Tsunoda driver made it back to the pits, but he was forced to retire due to damage incurred.
Ricciardo was soon handed a 10-second penalty by the FIA stewards. However, his recovery was helped by him being one of the few drivers to switch to soft tyres for ...

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Tsunoda will enter 2023 as the most experienced F1 driver at AlphaTauri after long-serving teammate Pierre Gasly announced his exit for Alpine over the Japanese Grand Prix weekend.
Gasly will be replaced by Nyck de Vries, who has won titles in Formula 2 and Formula E, and made his F1 debut at Monza in September as a late stand-in for Alex Albon at Williams.
Tsunoda has shown ...

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Tsunoda missed out on competing in his home grand prix in his rookie season last year owing to the cancellation of the race amid the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning Friday morning's opening practice session marked his first laps in anger of the famed figure-of-eight venue since he raced at Suzuka in Japanese F4 back in 2018.
The Japanese driver racked up the most laps of any drivers in the field ...

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AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost had indicated for some time the plan was always to keep Tsunoda alongside Pierre Gasly - confirmation of whom was given back in June - pending sign-off from Red Bull.
Tsunoda said a few weeks ago that his future depended on "things in the background", but that he was satisfied with his displays even if the results this year have been hard to come by. Tsunoda ...

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