Yuki Tsunoda has disclosed that his huge crash at Imola last weekend has consigned him to running an older Red Bull floor design at Formula 1‘s Monaco Grand Prix.
Tsunoda’s outing at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix was compromised when he lost his Red Bull in qualifying and collided with the barrier during the opening session.
The damage to his RB21 was substantial, causing the Red Bull crew to undergo an extensive rebuild that required a spare chassis to be fitted alongside a new engine.
Tsunoda rallied in the race to recover from a pitlane start to 10th place to seize the final point, as team-mate Max Verstappen won to bolster his championship hopes.
But having executed that drive without the updated floor that Red Bull introduced on Verstappen’s car in Miami, Tsunoda is set to be without the part again in Monaco.
“In terms of package, to be honest I never ran the full new package yet, even Imola was a little bit different,” Tsunoda told media including Motorsport Week.
“I don’t think we’re going to have a full one [in Monaco], I just made a step back anyway, which is my fault.”
Tsunoda explains costly Imola shunt
Tsunoda attributed the incident to still getting accustomed to how the Red Bull RB21 responds to set-up changes compared to the Racing Bulls he’d driven previously.
“The set-up I tried was completely new. To be honest, I guess the Red Bull changes more than I expected,” the Japanese driver explained.
“The VCARB car, even if we change it, I don’t think it would have that much of a difference.
“So, I just have to take it easy when I change the set-up and try something new. It’s taking slightly more than expected.
“But as a group we have a good relationship between me and Woody [Richard Wood] and Cooke [Richard Cooke] as well. From our side of the garage, we just keep learning every race.”
How Tsunoda plans to tackle Monaco
Tsunoda admitted he would take a more measured approach to navigating Monaco’s tight and twisting streets, a configuration which is not expected to suit the RB21.
“In terms of track, I quite like it, and I had good memories last two years,” he added.
“Apparently, the Red Bull car is a very bumpy car in Monaco and it’s not an easy car to drive, that’s what Max said.
“So, I just need to build the confidence and hopefully I can make a good qualifying.
“You can’t just follow the same approach as Imola or other tracks where you have a bit of run-off, so I’m just going to build up the pace slowly.”
READ MORE – Yuki Tsunoda explains limitation plaguing Red Bull adaptation
