Yuki Tsunoda has credited outgoing AlphaTauri Formula 1 Team Principal Franz Tost for always believing in him and keeping him on the right track in the top flight.
Tsunoda was handed his F1 bow in 2021 but struggled immensely after a strong debut outing, leaving him surprised that AlphaTauri opted to retain him for the following season.
However, the departure of Pierre Gasly over the winter and the arrival of rookie Nyck de Vries in his place inspired a marked improvement from Tsunoda during 2023.
The Japanese driver thrived amid a tough beginning for the Faenza squad before capitalising on its late-season improvement to score 14 points in the last five rounds.
Having been re-signed for a fourth season, Tsunoda hailed Tost for being his “biggest supporter” ahead of his retirement after 18 years in charge of the Red Bull-owned side.
“Obviously, without Franz, I’m not here,” Tsunoda admitted in Abu Dhabi, where he rounded out the season in ninth. “He is definitely giving me a lot of advice every race.
“Even in the bad moments, good moments, we share with each other the happiness or sadness. He is always the biggest supporter in the team.
“He always trusts my talent, my speed, everything. Even in the first half of the season when I was struggling in my first year, still he was believing that I can do it.
“Without that kind of good backup, I wouldn’t have been able to develop as much as a driver. Probably I would rush much more and just lost the way I should have gone. How he treated in that time was really helpful.”
During his time at the helm, Tost helped develop the careers of World Champions Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen, plus Daniel Ricciardo, Carlos Sainz and Gasly.
The Austrian, 67, insisted that newcomers to F1 require three seasons to prove their credentials – a timeframe which Tsunoda agrees with based on his own experiences.
“First year, there was multiple reasons, but I wasn’t able to really show a performance in the first half of the season especially,” he explained.
“But from last year, I started to get better and my confidence getting better. Now I am just really focusing more to be a complete driver, [and] not just be fast.
“Also giving feedback for development or how mature you can be in a difficult situation, those are my targets.
“Every year I am able to find my weakness, which is good thing and I have been just working on that.”
Tsunoda’s exploits along with those of the returning Ricciardo helped AlphaTauri climb from the foot of the Constructors’ standings to eighth, three points shy of Williams.
The team, which will undergo a rebrand ahead of the 2024 season, will also benefit from a closer technical collaboration with Red Bull as it bids to improve its standing.
Meanwhile, ex-Ferrari Sporting Director Laurent Mekies will replace Tost, with Peter Bayer having arrived into the position of CEO midway through the most recent campaign.
