Formula 1: Yuki Tsunoda’s most important lessons learned

We spoke with Yuki Tsunoda about his rookie Formula 1 season thus far, including his goals, his biggest lessons learned and the biggest area in which he feels he can improve.

Coming off of a rookie Formula 2 season with Carlin in 2020 that saw him win three races and finished in third place in the driver standings, Yuki Tsunoda was promoted to Formula 1 with Scuderia AlphaTauri for the 2021 season.

Tsunoda, the first driver to compete in Formula 1 after having been born in the 21st century, is one of three rookies in this year’s 20-driver field, along with fellow 2020 Formula 2 drivers Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin, both of who compete for Haas.

Tsunoda got his Formula 1 career off to a hot start, finishing in ninth place to score two points on debut in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit, a race that saw him pass one of his childhood heroes, two-time world champion Fernando Alonso.

Now five races into his rookie season, Tsunoda has not yet managed to score any more points and sits in 14th place in the driver standings.

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We spoke with the 20-year-old Japanese driver about his season thus far and about some of the things he is looking toward as the 23-race 2021 season progresses.

“I think for me the biggest change between Formula 2 and Formula 1 is the downforce of the car – it’s unlike anything you can ever imagine!” Tsunoda told Beyond the Flag after discussing his recent participation in Red Bull Homestretch. “Add in the additional speed and it’s a whole other machine so the biggest lesson has been learning how to control an F1 car. Alongside that, the media commitments have taken some getting used to! A race weekend in F1 is far busier than in F2 and F3 so I was very tired at my first race. It’s so great that we’re seeing fans and journalists back at some races now. It adds a completely different atmosphere to the track.”

He admitted that his season has been trickier than he had imagined. Aside from his ninth place finish in Bahrain, he has finished in 12th in Imola, 15th in Portimao and 16th in Monaco. He retired from the race in Barcelona. Teammate Pierre Gasly, meanwhile, sits in ninth in the driver standings with 16 points on four top 10 finishes.

“It’s been trickier than I imagined if I’m honest,” he admitted. “I’ve made a few mistakes and am now starting to understand the car more but that’s what being a rookie in Formula 1 involves! I’m spending a lot of time on the simulator and working with my engineers and hopefully I’ll start putting it all together on track.”

His goals for the remainder of the 2021 season include being more consistent and scoring more points while understanding his setups better, capitalizing on the speed in his AT02, and effectively learning new tracks.

“To score points! I think that’s all every driver can hope for, especially as a rookie, and I hope to be more consistent with my points as we carry on through the season,” he said. “We’ve shown that the pace in the car is there and I’ve just got to understand the setup, alongside learning tracks that are new to me, and I hope we can have a good season.”

One of the areas in which he feels he needs to grow is mentally, given the response that some of his radio messages have generated so far this year.

“Everyone has been talking about my radio messages whilst in the car – for me that’s something I still need to work on,” he noted. “I think the fans are enjoying it but I still feel like I need to control myself a bit better in the car. I came away from Barcelona quite disheartened, so I’ve had a mental reset and I hope that showed in Monaco.”

Tsunoda is set to make his sixth career Formula 1 start this Sunday, June 6 in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at Baku City Circuit. ESPN is set to broadcast this race live beginning at 8:00 a.m. ET.