How to judge Yuki Tsunoda's debut at Red Bull?

He was the man of the moment at Suzuka: this weekend, it was impossible to talk about the Japanese Grand Prix without mentioning the local star, Yuki tsunoda. And it was even less this year. Just days after his promotion to Red Bull, instead of Liam Lawson, the Japanese went to his homeland and that of Honda, who has nurtured him since his debut in carAt the center of attention – popular, sporting and media – since his arrival on the circuit on Thursday, the Japanese driver has changed dimension and was not lacking in ambition before tackling his home event. The declared and assumed objective: a podium, just that, for his first with Red Bull. Alas, the step was certainly too high for the 24-year-old driver.

However, the weekend didn't start so badly: during Free Practice – with the exception of FP2, which was interrupted four times – Yuki Tsunoda was on time with his teammate Max Verstappen. In Q1 too. Unfortunately, in Q2, the Japanese driver was confronted with the limits of the RB21 and his lack of experience aboard the Austrian single-seater: guilty of a small but costly error in the first corner, the ex-Racing Bulls driver was eliminated in 15th place behind a certain… Liam Lawson. Promoted to 14th place on the grid after the penalty of Carlos Sainz, Yuki Tsunoda already saw his hopes of a podium finish disappear.

A frustrating race for Tsunoda

In the race, neither the rain, nor a Safety Car, nor the strategy offered an opportunity to the new Red Bull driver. Stuck in the heart of the pack, he was never able to gain the upper hand over the drivers slower than him, due to a resurfaced track that allowed higher passing speeds and therefore more dirty air when following the car in front. Although he seemed to have more pace than his rivals, Yuki Tsunoda was never able to fully exploit it. After gaining two positions, one at the start against Liam Lawson, one after the missed pit stop of Pierre Gasly, the Japanese finally finished 12th in his national Grand Prix, without a podium therefore, and even without scoring any points. The only reward: the honorary title of Driver of the Day, awarded by the F1 with the fans' vote.

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It's Yuki Tsunoda who is @salesforce Driver of the Day at the Japanese Grand Prix 🇯🇵#F1 #JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/vjjFCDeQb4

- Formula 1 (@ F1) April 6, 2025

"It's mixed feelings. Obviously, the result is not what I wanted, confided a Yuki Tsunoda obviously disappointed with his performance. I wanted to at least finish in the points this weekend. I think in qualifying I just had to do a little bit better. I think the pace was there, I was just stuck in traffic the whole race. It was quite frustrating, but at the same time, I feel like I learned a lot in 53 laps. I learned more than anything, so I'm staying positive about it. I'm looking forward to the next Grand Prix, but at the same time, it was my home Grand Prix. It's once a year, so it was a little bit difficult.

Despite this result and this pointless score, Yuki Tsunoda can find some satisfaction. Despite his lack of driving with the RB21, the Japanese driver seemed to be more comfortable than Liam Lawson ever was: moreover, in his two Grands Prix with Red Bull, the New Zealander had not qualified for Q2 and had not done better than 12th place in China… thanks to the disqualifications of three drivers ahead of him. Above all, Yuki Tsunoda showed glimpses of his potential during the three days of driving at Suzuka. He himself declared that his "The level of trust is now completely different." after this home appointment. “I need to reset before Bahrain and I'm sure that based on how I felt, in terms of sensations and confidence, it will naturally be better there. I'll understand the car better and I'm looking forward to the next race, I just need to do better in qualifying.”

Marko tolerant, Horner satisfied

And what did the two heads of the Red Bull team, Christian Horner and Helmut Marko, think about it? For once, the two men seem to agree. For the Team Principal of the Austrian outfit, who described it as " solid performance » the performance of his new driver, it was the qualifications and his error in Q2 which put him in a delicate position for the Grand Prix"The nature of the race made overtaking difficult throughout. But he gained positions and will only improve as he integrates into the team in the coming races.", declared the British leader.

© Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool

The same goes for Red Bull's special advisor, who prefers to remember the promises shown by Yuki Tsunoda during Free Practice and Q1. "He lost everything by making a mistake at the first corner in qualifying. But in all the other sessions he was close to two or three tenths of a second behind Max, and that's what we're looking for." The Japanese driver therefore retains the confidence of his team after this frustrating first round at Suzuka. Now that he has had a full-scale experience with Red Bull and the RB21, Yuki Tsunoda will be expected to do more in the coming rounds, starting with Bahrain, the circuit where he made his F1 debut (where he scored points in 2021). Without aiming for victory, the Japanese driver will at least have to get closer to his teammate and score points regularly. In any case, that's what Red Bull is asking of him, for now.

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