Best moments of Yuki Tsunoda’s F1 career including first points, greatest Grand Prix results and funniest team radio outbursts

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Yuki Tsunoda produced some classic moments in Formula 1 in his career with Red Bull. So, F1 Oversteer has looked into some of his best, including his first points and funniest moments over team radio.

Tsunoda joined the F1 grid in 2021 after an impressive run in junior single-seaters in which he won the Super-FJ single-seater series and the Japanese Formula 4 Championship.

After success in his native country of Japan, Tsunoda would make the switch to championships in Europe, having joined the Honda Formula Dream Project.

From there, he competed in the Euroformula Open Championship and then FIA F3, finishing in fourth and ninth positions overall, respectively. Tsunoda competed in Formula 2 in 2020, where he finished the season third overall after three wins and four poles.

Much of his career has been helped by engine manufacturer Honda, whose ties earned him a seat in Red Bull’s Junior Driver Programme, with the team giving him his debut with Red Bull sister team AlphaTauri (now Racing Bulls).

After four seasons at Racing Bulls, Tsunoda would go on to make his debut for Red Bull after they decided he would replace Liam Lawson after two races of the 2025 season.

Where did Yuki Tsunoda make his F1 debut?

Tsunoda’s first Formula 1 race was the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix. He was the youngest driver on the grid at the age of 20 years old, with Kimi Raikkonen 22 years his senior at 42 years old.

The Japanese driver got off to a strong start in qualifying by setting the 13th quickest time of the day, which put him just outside contention for the points.

In the race, things would fare better for Tsunoda, with the AlphaTauri driver going on to break into the top ten positions.

When did Yuki Tsunoda earn his first points finish in F1?

Tsunoda would earn his first points in F1 on his debut at Bahrain, having worked his way through the field to finish in ninth place.

The Japanese driver had a poor start and lost positions to the cars around him, including Williams driver George Russell and Sauber’s Antonio Giovinazzi, which put him in P17.

Tsunoda would work his way through those cars and past the Aston Martin of Sebastian Vettel, and the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, with moves at the first corner of the Bahrain International Circuit.

He would later make his way past world champions Fernando Alonso and Raikkonen, putting him P10. A late move on the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll would see him cross the line in P9.

When did Yuki Tsunoda earn his first fastest lap in F1?

Tsunoda has only one fastest lap in F1 at the 2023 United States Grand Prix, where he set the quickest time around the Circuit of the Americas.

AlphaTauri had pitted Tsunoda late in the race for a set of soft tyres, and with a lighter car than anyone else, he managed to set the quickest time on Lap 56 of the Grand Prix.

His fastest lap was a 1:38.139s, which is at the time of writing his only fastest lap that he’s set in a Formula 1 race.

Yuki Tsunoda’s best moments over team radio

Known for his outbursts over team radio, Tsunoda has been the source of many memes and phrases that have now made it into F1 parlance.

The most notable one would be during qualifying for the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, after his team let him out to set a lap time behind a lot of traffic. Tsunoda would exclaim over team radio to his engineer: “It’s paradise! Like Traffic paradise! What is that man?!”

At the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, Tsunoda had another frantic moment when his engineer was telling him to make switches on his steering wheel to find more pace. Only it was around the incredibly tight street circuit.

Tsunoda’s most recent memorable outburst came at the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix, when Racing Bulls told him to swap position for Daniel Ricciardo who was on an alternate strategy. The Japanese driver didn’t immediately oblige.

Which has been Yuki Tsunoda’s best race in F1 so far?

Tsunoda’s best finish in Formula 1 was at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where he finished a career-high of fourth place for AlphaTauri.

Having outqualified teammate Pierre Gasly for the first time all season in eighth place, he followed it up with a top-four finish after overtaking Valtteri Bottas.

Tsunoda crossed the line in fourth ahead of Gasly, following the controversial end to the season involving the Safety Car in the final laps.

Other notable finishes include seventh at the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, and seventh place at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in 2024 after staying out of trouble in the treacherous conditions.