F1's Yuki Tsunoda Aims High For Red Bull Debut at Home Race In Japan, Hopes For Podium Finish
Yuki Tsunoda is already setting his own expectations for the upcoming 2025 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix!
The 24-year-old F1 driver will make his debut with Oracle Red Bull Racing at the race in one week, which is also his home race.
Just a few days ago, it was officially confirmed that Yuki would move up to the team from the Racing Bulls junior team, swapping places with Liam Lawson after a rough first two races of the season.
During an event over the weekend, Yuki opened up about his upcoming first race and how he hopes to place top three, while also acknowledging that he will still need to get comfortable in the car.
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“I don’t want to get my expectations too high, but first and foremost, I want to get on the podium at the Japanese GP,” he said, via Motorsport Japan. “However, I don’t think it will go so well from the start, so I need to understand the car first, and gradually check how it compares to the Racing Bulls’ car from FP1. Once I can naturally enjoy driving it, I think the results will follow. If that result is a podium, that would be fantastic.”
“I never thought I’d be racing for Red Bull at the Japanese GP,” Yuki admitted. “I’m happy, but I also feel like the team is changing… I don’t think I’ve ever been in a more pressured and challenging situation in my life, so I think it’s going to be an incredibly exciting race.”
Yuki is optimistic about the car after driving it on the simulator.
“On the simulator, I didn’t feel it was such a challenging car,” he shared. “Of course, I had the impression that it was a car that was prone to turning at the front, as people often say, but in terms of being tricky, it didn’t feel that strange. That is, on the simulator, after all.”
“Of course, I think the type of car I want to make is different from Max [Verstappen], so I want to make a good car myself, understand it, and gradually start running it,” he said.
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko also recently admitted that they should have promoted Yuki to the main team, instead of Liam Lawson.
“Yuki Tsunoda is a fast driver, we know that, but he’s had his ups and downs,” Helmut shared with Formel1.de. “That’s why we thought Lawson was the better and stronger candidate. But Yuki has undergone a transformation. He changed his management, and in this situation, this was simply the best option.”
Helmut also shared that they made the decision to promote Yuki after completing some simulator sessions following the Chinese Grand Prix.
“We had to act quickly,” the advisor said. “And everything was positive. Also the technical feedback, which he had often been accused of lacking, that he didn’t understand the technical side or couldn’t set up a car — that also turned out to be incorrect.”
Helmut insisted that there won’t be any more changes to the Red Bull team this year, with Yuki finishing out the rest of the season.