Yuki Tsunoda made his AlphaTauri debut in 2021 after impressing in F2 the previous year. His start to life in the sport didn’t quite go according to plan, with teammate Pierre Gasly comprehensively outperforming on almost all occasions. Tsunoda struggled a lot to get used to life in F1, and rumors of him getting replaced at the end of the season started to emerge.
However, midway into the 2021 campaign, he made the decision to move to Faenza, Italy. That is where AlphaTauri is based, and being close to the headquarters certainly helped him with his focus. Ever since moving to Italy, the Japanese driver admits that he has been happier, and the work-life balance has suited him.
On top of that, Tsunoda described how the weather and food are much better in Faenza. All these factors have contributed to his relative improvement in terms of performance in F1 races.
“In the UK, the atmosphere there was not as much as I wanted,” the AlphaTauri star said as reported by GPfans. “The weather especially impacted me. Weather is quite an important thing for me, and food is as well. So when I went to Italy, I already felt more energetic, more than usual. Then I felt it was a big, important move and was having a good impact on me.”
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Yuki Tsunoda looking to overcome Dutch challenge in 2023
Tsunoda’s had a much better 2022 than his rookie campaign. The gap between himself and Gasly wasn’t as big as it was in the initial stages, and he earned plaudits from Red Bull’s chief advisor Helmut Marko. However, the 22-year-old faces a new kind of challenge next season.
Gasly and Tsunoda had a great (possibly the best) relationship as teammates, but the Frenchman won’t be at the outfit anymore. He moves to Alpine, and Nyck de Vries has been brought in as his replacement. The Dutchman has only raced in one F1 Grand Prix but comes with huge racing achievements. He’s a former F2 Champion and also won the Formula E Title two years ago.
Red Bull has one of the most stacked junior programs in F1 today, and Tsunoda has to be at the top of his game if he wants to continue at the team post 2023.
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