AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda outlines what F1 star plans to ‘put right’ at Dutch GP

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Yuki Tsunoda has now explained what the AlphaTauri driver wants to ‘put right’ at this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix as Formula 1 edges out of its summer break at Zandvoort.

The 2023 F1 season has not yet yielded much success in Faenza as AlphaTauri prop up the constructor’s championship. Tsunoda has scored all of the Italian team’s measly three points so far this season. Only four drivers have earned fewer points than the 23-year-old this year.

AlphaTauri axed Nyck De Vries for Daniel Ricciardo ahead of the Hungarian GP having failed to score a single point. While Ricciardo is yet to put a point on the board through two races. Only Logan Sargeant has also failed to score a point during his debut F1 season for Williams.

Tsunoda took his most recent point at the final round before the summer break. He brought his AlphaTauri home in P10 at the Belgian GP after qualifying in P11. But he crossed the line within a second of Aston Martin star Lance Stroll. Ricciardo finished 23 seconds back in P16.

All three of Tsunoda’s point-scoring finishes this year have come with P10 results having also rounded out the points in Australia and Azerbaijan. He also finished in P11 in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Miami. But the Japanese talent is targeting more than just points in Zandvoort.

Yuki Tsunoda reveals what the AlphaTauri star wants to ‘put right’ at the Dutch GP

Tsunoda has now outlined his desires to ‘put right’ the AlphaTauri star’s failure to finish the Dutch GP during Formula 1’s past two visits. He has had to retire on each visit to Zandvoort since F1 returned to the Netherlands. But the Kanagawa-born ace also has another concern.

He is cautious about his team’s struggles in qualifying this year given the tight layout of the Zandvoort circuit. Tsunoda has only qualified inside the top 10 twice this season with eighth in Azerbaijan and ninth in Monaco. His average qualifying position in 2023 is just 14th place.

“We’ve had two races in Zandvoort in the past and I even made it to Q3 last year,” Tsunoda has told AlphaTauri’s official website ahead of the Dutch GP.

“But I’ve never finished, so that’s something I want to put right this weekend. I like the track because it’s technical with some unique features, such as the steeply banked corners and the mix of slow and fast turns. It’s physically quite demanding.

“I’m not sure how we will perform here because even if Spa went well, much of that was down to the specific nature of the track and even the weather. While Zandvoort is very different – a medium-to-high downforce circuit.

“But, hopefully, we can have another good race there. Because the track is very narrow, our main focus will be on qualifying well, which is something we have struggled with a bit so far this season. Let’s wait and see how it goes.”

Why did Yuki Tsunoda retire during F1’s last two visits to Zandvoort?

Tsunoda retired from the Dutch GP in strange circumstances in 2022 after AlphaTauri initially urged him to continue. The driver initially reported a problem with one of his wheels after a pit stop and stopped on the exit of Turn 3. But the team told him to continue before retiring.

While a power unit problem also forced Tsunoda to retire from the 2021 Dutch GP. He lost power on Lap 48 and had to watch from their garage while his then-AlphaTauri teammate, Pierre Gasly, came home in P4. The Frenchman started in P4 with Tsunoda P15 on the grid.