Yuki Tsunoda has been one of the standout drivers on the Formula 1 grid in 2024. Ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix, he’s sitting in the top 10 in the drivers’ championship.
Aston Martin are fifth in the constructors’ standings, having scored more than double RB’s number of points (44 vs 20). It’s a testament to Tsunoda, then, that he’s currently above Lance Stroll.
The Japanese driver has scored points in four of the past five Grands Prix, taking his individual tally to 15 by finishing 10th last time out at Imola. He bagged nearly half of his points in Miami by finishing eighth in the sprint and seventh in the main Grand Prix.
Tsunoda has comfortably out-performed his vastly more experienced and successful teammate Daniel Ricciardo. He leads the eight-time race-winner 6-1 in the qualifying head-to-head and 5-2 in the races.
The timing of this run of form is particularly significant. Like his teammate, the 24-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and Liam Lawson is set for one of the two RB seats next year.
Tsunoda hit 70 race starts at Imola as he finds another level in his fourth season of F1. Sky punditKarun Chandhok is among those to issue a glowing verdict on his performances.
Helmut Marko says Yuki Tsunoda has been much calmer this season
Writing in his column for Speedweek, Red Bull executive director Helmut Marko reflected on the latest ‘excellent’ performance from Tsunoda. Aside from the Chinese GP, where he suffered a DNF after qualifying 19th, Marko says he’s been on it all year.
The Austrian admits it’s taken him a ‘while’ to reach his current level, but feels he’s now becoming a rounded package. He’s cutting the errors out of his driving and improving his teamwork.
But the big change he’s noticed is his demeanour over the team radio. He says he’s now in ‘control’ of his emotions, which bodes well for the future.
Tsunoda has previously likened himself to a ‘Monsters Inc’ character given his tendency to become frustrated behind the wheel. He’s tried to learn from the calmer Ricciardo in this respect.
“This is part of a series of excellent performances from Yuki, he has performed every weekend except for China,” Marko said. “He hardly makes any mistakes anymore, he is focused, he works well with the engineers. It took a while, but now he is able to use his talent and speed skillfully.
“Above all, he has better control over his emotions than before, which can also be heard on the radio. Keeping emotions under control and not making any more mistakes, one goes hand in hand with the other. We see a continuously upward performance curve from him.”
What Yuki Tsunoda has said about taking Sergio Perez’s Red Bull seat
The 2024 season got off to a rough start for Tsunoda as he publicly clashed with his team in Bahrain. He wasn’t happy with their instruction to let Ricciardo past in the closing stages, and they nearly collided on the cooldown lap.
Anthony Davidson called him a ‘little terrier’ with the visor down, but he’s now combatting his hot-headed reputation. The key question is whether that will be enough for him to earn a Red Bull seat.
After all, the primary purpose of the RB team is to train up drivers for a seat with Christian Horner’s squad. Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Pierre Gasly have all taken that path in recent years.
One journalist claimed earlier in the year that Red Bull didn’t seem particularly ‘bothered’ by Tsunoda’s starring displays. And he himself admits that he’s not in active talks with Horner and co.
Instead, he’s looking at possible options elsewhere. Aston Martin is an option for 2026 as they enter an engine partnership with Honda, and he’s now said to be in the mix for a seat at Haas next year too.
The post 'Above all': Helmut Marko shares the big change he’s noticed in ‘excellent’ Yuki Tsunoda this season appeared first on F1 Oversteer.