‘Not Going to Burn Him’ – Red Bull Advisor Refuses Early Promotion of Yuki Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda has already made a great impression on F1 fans. The young AlphaTauri driver made his debut in Bahrain and caught their eyes when he crossed the checkered flag in P9. The 20-year-old is certainly a very highly rated driver who has got the talent and skill to become a real world-class racer. However, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko is wary of pushing Tsunoda too much.

The Austrian team seems to have learned from their treatment of past academy drivers. Marko insists that they won’t throw Tsunoda from the frying pan into the fire by giving him a shot in a Red Bull so soon.

Motorsport quoted Marko saying, “We’ve had the first of 23 races, so let’s see how things develop.

“We have an incredible rough diamond in Yuki. We’re not going to burn him. We will look at the development and then make our decisions in a timely manner.”

Red Bull’s previous academy talent, the likes of Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly, Daniil Kvyat, have all learned the hard way that rushing their development was not the right call. But Yuki can count himself lucky; he’ll be given enough time to acclimatize to F1 before any further decision is made.

But no doubt, the raw talent is definitely there in the Japanese driver to push for higher honors.

Red Bull F1’s advisor happy to have Yuki Tsunoda in their setup

Following his eye-catching antics in the season opener, Dr. Helmut heaped praise on the AlphaTauri man.

He said, “The way he goes about it, the way he makes the car fly [is fantastic]. He’s also a charismatic, funny guy. We are very happy to have him.”

Tsunoda’s development is definitely something to keep an eye on. Even on his debut, Yuki appeared to be in the zone and put in a matured display. No doubt, he’ll be brimming with confidence not only due to the result but also due to his bold move on Fernando Alonso that he made stick.

Can he build on this display in the next race in Imola? We’ll have to wait until April 18th to find out.

Also Read: Yuki Tsunoda Targeting Verstappen as Key F1 Rival in Debut Season