Red Bull Racing Formula One driver Yuki Tsunoda has opened up on a message he received from the team’s ousted CEO and team principal, Christian Horner. The message arrives amid Tsunoda’s ongoing struggles with Red Bull’s RB21 F1 car.
The Japanese driver was promoted from the Red Bull junior F1 team Racing Bulls after the Chinese Grand Prix. Swapping seats with Liam Lawson, Tsunoda was placed alongside Max Verstappen to enhance the team’s performance. However, with the RB21 reportedly suited to the four-time world champion, Tsunoda has been facing similar battles as his predecessors.
The 2024 season saw Sergio Perez face similar challenges with the RB20, which was affected by balance problems, ultimately resulting in Red Bull losing out on the constructors’ championship. The underwhelming performance eventually led to Perez’s exit from the team.
Red Bull parted ways with Horner after the British Grand Prix for reasons not yet known. He was replaced by Racing Bulls’ former team principal, Laurent Mekies. Racing Bulls sporting director Alan Permane was promoted to team principal to replace Mekies.
Tsunoda opened up about a motivational message from Horner ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. He said:
“Yeah, I think not much to say. I appreciate how Christian supported me in previous races. And, yeah, I mean, also, I got a message from him actually yesterday that, you know, show what you can do and, you know, yeah, it was a nice message.”
Speaking on working with Mekies again, he added:
“And with Laurent, yeah, I know him since VCARB and we’ve worked really well. We had a good start of the year in terms of performance. And, you know, we had a lot of trust between us. So, yeah, looking forward to work with him. And, yeah, Alan, I just met him and congrats as well. Messaged as well. But he’s definitely motivated. And, yeah, I think, yeah, I’m excited to see how he’s going to do as team principal.”
Addressing the RB21, Tsunoda explained that he had never seen any other driver adapt to the car quickly, but he remains confident about getting used to it. He said:
“I didn’t see yet so far the driver who probably got used to it in that car straight away. So that’s probably the fact. But at the same time, I feel I’m in the right direction, at least on the short runs. Also in terms of the whole package, I know there’s something to come as well into this year compared to Max.
“So once I get the full package, I still have good confidence that I can be in a level that they want. That’s what I’m working hard on. In terms of the long run is exactly the place that I’m still probably struggling at, but I’ll find a way. I saw a couple of driving styles that I can try that I never tried in my career in Formula 1. It’s just the learning stuff.”
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