Tsunoda looking for Bahrain reset after 'mixed feelings' from Red Bull debut

Yuki Tsunoda says his confidence changed massively through the Japanese Grand Prix weekend but he will need to reset ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. Red Bull swapped Liam Lawson and Tsunoda ahead of the race at Suzuka, demoting Lawson to Racing Bulls after just two events. While the move looked to be paying off as Tsunoda enjoyed a strong set of practice sessions and Q1 outing, he failed to escape Q2 and was stuck in traffic that prevented him from scoring points, something he admits was a big disappointment at his home race despite the experience he gained. “It’s tough because I wanted to at least finish in the points,” Tsunoda said. “I am happy with the race in terms of what I have learnt but not in terms of result, so it’s mixed feelings. I was feeling a lot of support from the crowd, every lap it felt more and I wanted to give something more back to them. “At least I know I did the maximum I could in the race and these 53 laps gave me so much to learn about the car. I now know what kind of things I need to work on. I was stuck behind cars all day in traffic so it’s hard to know the full race pace of this car but, every lap of the 53, I was building up my confidence in the car. “That confidence level is now completely different from the beginning of the weekend to now, I feel positive about that, but I am still disappointed because it is a home grand prix and it’s only once a year. “I need to reset before Bahrain and I am sure compared to what I was feeling, in terms of car and in terms of confidence it will naturally be better there. I will understand more about the car, and I am excited for the next one, I just need to do better in qualifying.” Team principal Christian Horner agrees with Tsunoda that he is capable of better results based on the performance he showed at times during the Suzuka weekend, and says he’s impressed with how the 24-year-old has settled into the team. “He’s given very good feedback,” Horner said. “His P1 was very strong, P3 was fine, Q1 he was only a tenth away from Max… Q2 he made a mistake – he was 15ks quicker than he’s ever been into Turn 1, had a moment and then you’re chasing the lap the rest of the way. “So qualifying 14th dictated his race. He made an overtake and had an undercut on Pierre Gasly. And then spent the rest of the afternoon looking at Fernando Alonso’s rear wing. “But in a race where there was… I can’t remember seeing any overtakes, at all … I think that had he qualified higher he would have finished naturally higher. I think he’s given good feedback. And I think that now he’s finding his feet in the team, we’ll see over the next few races that performance will step forward.”