Yuki Tsunoda says it is “inevitable” that he will make mistakes in the early stages of 2021 as he gets accustomed to Formula 1.
Tsunoda, 20, has had a rapid ascent to Formula 1, progressing from Formula 4, Formula 3 and Formula 2 in successive seasons.
Tsunoda was catapulted to an AlphaTauri Formula 1 seat by backers Red Bull and Honda after finishing third in Formula 2 – as top rookie – behind Mick Schumacher and Callum Ilott.
The Japanese youngster continued to get up to speed in Formula 1 machinery last week during a private two-day test in AlphaTauri’s 2019-spec STR14 at Imola.
AlphaTauri is due to hold another test at Imola in late February though only one official pre-season test will take place, of length three days, prior to Tsunoda’s debut in Bahrain.
“This will be my rookie season and I will be pushing hard right from the beginning to adapt to the car as much as possible,” said Tsunoda.
“However, I’m not afraid to make mistakes – I will of course try and limit them – but they are inevitable at the beginning.
“I am confident I can learn from my mistakes though, as I proved last year in Formula 2.”
Tsunoda believes working on his mindset through the course of the 2020 campaign proved influential in ultimately securing a promotion to Formula 1.
“Last year for me was a season in which I made a big improvement in all aspects of my job,” he said.
“First of all, in terms of my driving but also in terms of my mentality and psychology regarding how I approached my racing.
“From the mid-season on, I worked with a psychological trainer and we talked a lot about my racing – how I prepare for the race and my attitude during the race – as well as other factors.
“That resulted in my mentality improving a lot. By the end of the season, it was not yet where I wanted to be, but had improved so much since the start of the season.”
