Yuki Tsunoda has admitted that he is “not enjoying” the constant pressure that comes with being a Red Bull driver. The 25-year-old has struggled to get to grips with the RB21 ever since making his move over from Racing Bulls earlier this season. Now, he has acknowledged that the pressure is mounting up.
The Japanese has only managed to score seven points in eight races weekends for Red Bull this year. While he has shown some promise, his overall performances have still been underwhelming. Tsunoda has failed to score a single point in the last three rounds.
Most recently in Canada though, Tsunoda feels he was handicapped unfairly after receiving a 10-place grid drop for a red flag infringement in FP3. Speaking to the media after the race, he claimed that P12 was the best he could do in Montreal.
But Tsunoda also admitted that he still needs to be competing for higher positions on the track, despite the problems he is be encountering.
“Still with our team, you want to be as high as possible, but I enjoy this challenge I guess. [In] these moments I’m having a lot of pressure, sometimes I’m not enjoying them that much but it’s part of the time that [is] an opportunity to improve myself and prove myself more,” he said. [via F1.com]
Tsunoda has got more leeway than Liam Lawson did in the second Red Bull seat this year. The Kiwi driver was demoted back to RB after just two race weekends earlier this season. But Tsunoda also has more credit in the bank, based on his performances in F1 over the last four years.
Yuki Tsunoda claims “car performance” was a positive in Canada
Speaking to the aforementioned outlet after the Canadian GP, Yuki Tsunoda said that “car performance” was a positive coming out of a difficult weekend for him. The driver claimed that the RB21 is now improving in its drivability, as he branded it as “more normal” now.
Trying to find a silver lining after a poor run of form, Tsunoda claimed that he felt an improvement in his Red Bull’s pace and stability at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
“The pace was okay, not amazing but still not too bad. Other than that, pretty much that’s it really. At least [a] positive is the car performance now, and the pace in the car felt a bit more normal or better than last previous races, so at least there’s a bit of motivation there.” he said.
Red Bull are hoping to improve their car throughout the 2025 season. This is primarily because they want Max Verstappen to defend his world championship. But Yuki Tsunoda will also be hoping to benefit if the RB21 does improve.
This would still not be a guarantee though. A stark difference in performance between Verstappen and any of his previous teammates has always existed at Red Bull.
