Tsunoda made his Formula 1 debut

Phew, Yuki tsunoda almost has his Superlicense. Until now, the Japanese were notably missing the 300 kilometers aboard a Formula 1 to obtain the precious sesame which allows you to race in F1. This is the mission accomplished. The leader of the sector Red Bull completed 350 kilometers on Thursday behind the wheel of theAlpha Tauri 2018, i.e. 72 laps of the Imola circuit.

The third in the championship Formula 2 with Carlin joined Emilia Romagna after last weekend's grand prix. Tsunoda completed his first laps on wet tires on a damp track after the cool of the night before switching to slicks during his fifth stint. “It was nice to see the mechanics remove the heating blankets from around the tires before letting me go” smiled the Japanese. “I had only seen this in the official Formula 1 video game. I dreamed of experiencing this kind of moment in real life. »

He recognizes that Formula 1 is very different from the Formula 2 he is used to driving.

“It’s another world, especially in terms of power and braking. I didn't worry about my times, I was just focused on getting used to an F1 car. There are so many things to do in an F1 car, like changing the steering wheel. But I had done a lot of simulator work in the Red Bull factory in Milton Keynes. When I went to Faenza to have my seat molded there, we talked a lot about the steering wheel settings” detailed Yuki Tsunoda after his session.

« It takes time to remember everything in the heat of the moment when your engineer asks you to adjust a mode. At first, I tended to look at the steering wheel, even if it meant slowing down. I also did a lot of physical training to prepare for Formula 1 and yet I was quite tired at the end of the day. If the driving sensations are similar, it is much harder physically than F2. »

This is the first time a Japanese driver has driven an F1 car since Naoki Yamamoto, who took part in the first free session of the 1 F2019 Japanese GP with the Team Rosso Bull.

Yuki Tsunoda is a candidate for the starting position at AlphaTauri from 2021 alongside Pierre Gasly. He now has to finish in the top four of the F2 championship to obtain his SuperLicense.