Yuki Tsunoda, who was tipped by many as the bright future for F1, has failed to meet the expectations in his rookie season. The young Japanese driver was involved in several collisions, having shunts at Imola, Baku, France, and Budapest. Despite that, AlphaTauri kept faith in Tsunoda and retained him for the next season.
However, after the announcement of his 2022 contract, Yuki Tsunoda revealed at the Italian GP driver’s conference that he was “a bit surprised” to renew his contract with the Faenza-based team.
Meanwhile, the former Formula 1 driver, David Coulthard, was outraged by the statement made by Yuki Tsunoda.
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What did David Coulthard say?
“What planet is he from? I think he should pack his little bag and go home now because that is not the voice of a racing driver,” said David Coulthard in an interview with Channel 4.
“‘I’m shocked they could retain me because I keep crashing’.”
“I’d book a plane ticket now and get it nice and cheap because he won’t be in Formula 1 beyond the end of next year,” concluded the former Red Bull driver.
This is pretty tough for me: Yuki Tsunoda after his second consecutive DNF at the Italian GP
During the Belgian GP, the Japanese driver could only complete three laps behind the safety car because of heavy rainfall. While at the Zandvoort, Tsunoda retired because of reliability issues, and at the AlphaTauri’s home race at Monza, a breaking issue denied the 21-year-old from starting the race. Meanwhile, Yuki Tsunoda was left disappointed after losing more track time at the recently concluded triple-header.
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“On the lap to the grid we found a technical issue, and we brought the car back to the garage and try to fix it completely, but it was not possible, so we had to retire,” said Yuki Tsunoda.
“That’s two races in a row with an issue, so I have to [keep going]. It is what it is. Especially now I need the laps to build up the confidence and learn about the car, and like this is pretty tough for me.”
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Can Yuki Tsunoda turn his fortune around after securing his future in F1 with AlphaTauri? What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.