Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has revealed how the Formula 1 giants have been ‘coaching’ Yuki Tsunoda, as his future with the team hangs in the balance.
The Japanese driver has been suffering with the complex RB21 machine, which has been perhaps its most difficult car for years.
With Max Verstappen struggling to extract winning performances from it for most of the season, it would always be a tricky challenger for his team-mate.
And with Liam Lawson ousted after just two rounds, Tsunoda was drafted in to see if he could cope any better.
Whilst there have been a handful of points since taking over from the Japanese Grand Prix, Tsunoda has largely been uncompetitive.
But his fortunes turned around at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, finishing sixth after a fine drive, narrowly losing out on fifth to Lawson in the sister Racing Bulls car.
The RB21 has undeniably improved since the resumption of F1 after the summer break, with Verstappen dominating proceedings at both Baku and the previous round at Monza
Speaking to Sky Germany, Marko explained the approach the team has taken into helping Tsunoda get the best out of the car.
“We sat down after the race in Monza – Tsunoda was sometimes a second slower than Max in the race – and decided on a different approach,” Marko said.
“Simply put, you have to coach him more because of the less experience compared to Max. We have set up the car more according to his wishes.”
Tsunoda is thought to be in a fight for a place within the team and the wider Red Bull family, with Lawson’s team-mate Isack Hadjar reportedly set to be Verstappen’s team-mate next year.
Other speculation has pointed towards the outfit’s junior driver and current Formula 2 star Arvid Lindblad to a Racing Bulls seat next year, leaving Tsunoda and Lawson potentially battling for one seat at the sister squad.
READ MORE – How Mercedes F1 simulator failure contributed to Kimi Antonelli mid-season woes
Discussion about this post