Alice Powell criticises ‘very bizarre’ decision one team made during Bahrain Grand Prix

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Visa Cash App RB made a ‘very bizarre’ call in instructing Yuki Tsunoda to let Daniel Ricciardo past during the Bahrain Grand Prix, BBC F1 pundit Alice Powell says.

RB ordered Tsunoda, who was chasing Haas driver Kevin Magnussen for 12th, to cede position to Ricciardo in the closing stages of the race.

Former GP3 and W-Series driver Powell says the move, which angered Tsunoda, ‘made no sense’.

In a series of radio messages, Tsunoda asked the team if they were ‘kidding’ when they issued their command.

He then sarcastically thanked them after moving over for the Australian, before insisting that he needed to ‘speed up’.

Ricciardo was running on the faster soft compound tyres at the time but couldn’t clear Magnussen, and RB had to settle for 13th and 14th.

Alice Powell sides with Yuki Tsunoda in Daniel Ricciardo controversy

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Chequered Flag podcast, Powell said she ‘fully’ understood Tsunoda’s reaction.

She suggested that RB ought to have allowed Tsunoda to retake the place at the chequered flag after Ricciardo failed to make the move.

Tsunoda had qualified in 11th place, three spots ahead of former Red Bull driver Ricciardo at the start of their first full season together.

“It made no sense whatsoever,” Powell said. “I fully stand with Tsunoda and his frustration. The only thing I can think is they maybe thought ‘Tsunoda is struggling to get past Magnussen, so we’ll let Ricciardo go through and see if he can have a go’.

“He was on the soft tyre. He didn’t manage to do it, and there was obviously a very sarky radio message from Tsunoda to his team.

“I thought they may swap them back around at the end, but they didn’t, so I’m with Tsunoda on that one. A very bizarre decision.”

Ricciardo offers optimism as RB try to recover from 13-year low

It was a messy start to the campaign and to the new era for the renamed RB team, and it could have been a lot worse after Tsunoda and Ricciardo narrowly avoided a collision on the cooldown lap.

Ricciardo says he found much of the race ‘painful’ but did at least sound a note of optimism ahead of Jeddah.

The eight-time Grand Prix winner has an ‘idea’ of how RB can improve as they go in search of their first points of 2024.

The Faenza outfit are under pressure to get on the board quickly after notching a mere 25 points last year, only enough for eighth in the championship.

That was their lowest haul since 2010, back when they still known as Toro Rosso.