Yuki Tsunoda has impressed his Red Bull bosses since taking the team’s second Formula 1 seat alongside Max Verstappen, despite there being a big gap between the two.
The Japanese driver was drafted into the Milton Keynes squad to replace Liam Lawson after just two Grands Prix, the Kiwi being unable to get to grips with the tricky RB21.
Tsunoda has so far scored a modest six points for the team, with two in Bahrain and a further four last time out in Miami, but has shown more competitiveness than Lawson.
In three of the four races he has raced for Red Bull, Tsunoda has made it into Q3, with Lawson failing to do so in his two outings.
However, the gap between himself and Verstappen is still evident, averaging around six tenths of a second behind his four-time World Champion team-mate.
Christian Horner has intimated that Tsunoda and Verstappen were in sync in terms of acknowledging the car’s problems, but concluded the Dutchman’s supreme ability gives him an edge.
“I think obviously he’s working on the set-up to suit his own requirements,” he told Motorsport Week.
“He’s talking about all the same issues that Max is in the debrief, so obviously Max’s ability to deal with them is, as we know, exceptional.
“So hopefully as the car improves that will also help Yuki as well.”
Tsunoda ‘focusing’ on his own performance
A planned test at Silverstone, where Tsunoda drove the RB19 in a bid to integrate himself further with the team, was spoiled by bad weather.
However, it has not stopped Horner from putting praise onto Tsunoda, and said that he needs further time to become more accustomed to Red Bull.
“It’s just more seat time, him getting used to the engineering, the way that the team works and so on,” Horner told Sky F1 of the test.
“I think he’s doing a nice job. And he’s brought a really positive energy into the team. He’s a character. He’s offering some really useful feedback as well, which is giving a good direction.
“And he’s in his fifth year, so he’s done quite a few races now. He understands how it works.
“And what I’ve noticed with him, he’s not obsessing what Max is doing.
“He’s just focusing on his own set-up with his engineer and not trying to mirror what’s going on on the other side of the garage, which I think is the right approach.”
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