Laurent Mekies points out ‘most frustrating aspect’ of Yuki Tsunoda’s Monza retirement

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Yuki Tsunoda was the sole retirement from the Italian Grand Prix after a collision with Nico Hulkenberg seven laps into the Italian Grand Prix.

Nico Hulkenberg collided with the side of the Japanese driver at the Varante Chicane, inflicting race-ended damage to the floor of Yuki Tsunoda.

It was his first retirement since the Chinese GP after he was crashed into by Hulkenberg’s teammate Kevin Magnussen. The collision ended up contributing to him sitting out the next race Baku, after the Dane triggered the 12 penalty points on his FIA super licence needed to trigger a race ban.

Tsunoda was far from pleased with Hulkenberg having given the German enough space to complete an overtaking manoeuvre, but Visa CashApp RB team principal Laurent Mekies revealed another knock-on effect of the crash for the team in their official race review.

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RB denied opportunity to test new parts after Yuki Tsunoda retirement

RB brought a few upgrades to this race including a new floor and halo aimed at bringing them more performance to the track.

But because Hulkenberg’s collision damaged the floor, Tsunoda was forced to retire because of the net effect it had on his car balance. This denied the team the opportunity to compare it to Ricciardo, who was running the old-specification parts.

Mekies was less than impressed by the Haas driver’s antics: “One could say our race was dictated by Hulkenberg, with Daniel given a five-second penalty, having forced him of the track, before Nico then drove into Yuki, leading to us retiring the car.

“The most frustrating aspect of Yuki’s retirement is that we lost 40 laps that would have increased our understanding of the updates we introduced here.”

RB in championship battle with Haas

RB is currently in a tight battle with Haas for sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, with the Red Bull sister team currently leading on 34 points and the American team on 28 points.

Entering the final eight races will be critical for them as they hope to secure the position, which is worth millions of pounds in prize money at the end of the season.

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It is also important for Ricciardo, who has yet to secure his drive for next year and could face being replaced by Liam Lawson.

Helmut Marko has said the team will announce their plans for Lawson this month, with Ted Kravitz making the prediction that it is likely Ricciardo will be dropped in favour of the New Zealander.