AlphaTauri rookie Yuki Tsunoda quipped he is “trying to train myself not to swear” while behind the wheel, in a bid to improve his performance.
Tsunoda, 20, has stepped up to Formula 1 for 2021 with AlphaTauri, having finished third in last year’s Formula 2 championship.
Tsunoda understeered wide through the final corner during opening practice in Bahrain and voiced his frustration, exclaiming “come on I got f***ing traffic.”
He explained afterwards that it is an aspect of his approach that he is trying to eradicate.
“I always try to be more calm in every session, so this is like my weakest point,” he said.
“Also, on the mentality side, last year I was swearing a lot and losing my focus, so I’m trying to train myself not to swear a lot.
“I was a bit too emotional in FP1. In FP2 there was no swearing, so a good step for me from FP1! That’s good.”
Tsunoda finished the day in seventh position, within half a second of pacesetter Max Verstappen, and in front of AlphaTauri team-mate Pierre Gasly.
“Yes, it was OK, it was not a perfect lap, but compared to FP1 I did a better performance,” he said.
“Overall, also for the car and the team, there was good progress in this session.
“[To] get a top eight or top seven [in qualifying], that would be great. The main focus for me is to do the best performance I can and beat my team-mate.”
