Yuki Tsunoda was beaming with relief after Sunday’s Japanese GP in which the local hero scored a point on home soil for the first time in his F1 career, a result that capped off a strong weekend and also marked his second consecutive top-10 finish.
But Tsunoda’s run to the checkered flag wasn't without its challenges.
Starting from P10 on the grid, he lost two positions off the line, which compelled his RB team to switch him to a used set of softs for the race’s restart.
The gamble played out nicely in the opening laps of the Japanese driver’s first stint, allowing him to recoup his spot among the top ten.
However, Tsunoda’s spell on the softs was brief and on lap 8 he was back in the pits for a swap to the hard tyre, a change that dropped him all the down to P16.
He had battled his way back up to P13 by lap 23 when he took on his second and final set of hards.
The moment proved a turning point for Tsunoda: his RB crew pulled off a lightning-fast pit stop that propelled him ahead of several competitors and back into the points.
“[I’m] relieved,” he said after the race. “I would say after I lost a couple of positions in the first start, yeah I felt a bit of disappointment for sure but at the same time I had a great start after that and I think one of the big highlights was the pit stop.
“Our team did a fantastic job, the mechanics were very fast and we overtook two cars, insane! So – without them, without that – it probably would have been a lot more difficult to score a point today so big credit to the team and obviously able to score in front of Japanese fans finally, so very happy.”
While the pit stop was indeed crucial, Tsunoda also did his part, holding up his end of the bargain with a stellar drive.
His car’s high downforce setup compromised his straight-line speed but allowed him to excel in corners, Suzuka's primary overtaking zones.
Tsunoda capitalized on this with intelligence, battling his way through Suzuka's Esses corners and proving his racing talent.
“Definitely, feeling confidence you know,” he continued. “I knew that our straight-line speed is not that competitive compared to other cars, I knew other cars had a better straight-line speed.
"But at the same time, we know we had a lot of downforce and the only chance we had was in the Esses, that we normally use – that are affected by downforce.
“So I tried my best, a couple of overtakes and yeah, I definitely enjoyed that.”
Tsunoda’s first point at Suzuka helped RB consolidate its sixth-place position in F1’s Constructors’ standings.
“But the 23-year-old’s consistent performances this season have made him a valuable asset to his team, especially with teammate Daniel Ricciardo’s early exit from Sunday’s race.
