Yuki Tsunoda

Junior Career

Yuki Tsunoda's progression through the junior categories was a bit of a surprise. The rate at which he graduated from one category to another, not spending more than a year in any of them was the sign of an ambitious talent who wanted to do well. He raced with the Honda formula dream project in Japan and when he won the F4 Japanese Championship, he was put on a fast track to F1. The driver spent only one year each in F3 and F2, consistently showing improvement. His best showing was the Formula 2 season where he finished 3rd in the championship in his rookie season behind Mick Schumacher and Calum Illot.

Formula 1 Career

The impressive showing got him a shot at Formula 1 with AlphaTauri. Tsunoda was teamed up Pierre Gasly, an experienced midfielder with a win to his name. The rookie season in F2 was somewhat underwhelming for Yuki. He was too crash prone and somewhat hot-heated as well while racing. So much so that the Japanese driver admitted his surprise at getting a contract extension with the team. There were some impressive performances as well during the season that did convince AlphaTauri to give him another season.

The 2022 F1 season was Yuki's second year in the sport and he did show marked improvement this time around. The driver was more consistent. He made lesser mistakes and he was more competitive against Pierre Gasly. While he was still not the complete package, Red Bull was quite impressed by the young driver to give him another year in F1.

The 2023 F1 season has seen Yuki saw major improvements. He's more consistent now and gets the most out of the car. On the other hand, the Japanese driver has seen two teammates come and go already in the season. The driver has taken over the leadership role within the team and has been very impressive.