Yuki Tsunoda Claps Back at Max Verstappen’s “Shortest” Insult With 3 Word Response to Set the Record Straight

Red Bull and AlphaTauri may be competitors on the racetrack, but they are owned by Red Bull. AlphaTauri serves as the junior team for the Red Bull F1 team. On several occasions, drivers from the sister concerns have come together to create great content for the fans. This time around, it is RB’s Max Verstappen and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda that take part in an exciting and surprising challenge.

F1 cars are bigger than they have ever been in the history of the sport. And F1 drivers are accustomed to driving that big a car at the highest of speeds. But can they race MEGA Trucks? The latest teaming up of the drivers was for a race challenge at the bottom of the Erzberg Mine in Austria, where they drove “roaring trucks with 500 horsepower engines.” The track was the bumpiest of ones and their Youtube video gives us a peek into the adventure. But the hilarious part of the video comes at the beginning itself when Tsunoda is made fun of for his “shortest” stature.

The video starts with Verstappen, saying, “I’m going to race F1’s shortest driver.” Tsunoda does not seem too amused at the line and replies: “That’s not true”. Though those lines are most probably scripted, we also see unscripted banter between the two when they first take their blindfolds and see the mighty trucks, ‘SUPERMAX’ and ‘YUKINATOR’ for the first time. In the first instance, Verstappen quips “Hope you can jump in”.

Read More: Red Bull Admits to Committing $2,190,000 “Mistake” After Rejecting Christian Horner’s Valuable Opinion

Though Verstappen made fun of Tsunoda because of his height, it was the Japanese driver who had the last laugh.

Yuki Tsunoda Beats Max Verstappen In the ‘YUKINATOR’

While Verstappen might be cruising along on the F1 racetrack, the Erzberg Mine was Tsunoda’s playground. The “Triangle” looking circuit consisted of 3 prime challenges. First, the car yard, which is a natural placement when mega trucks are present. Second, a very muddy puddle, the “Swimming Pool”. Third, “The Big Drift”, involves drifting around a huge Red Bull can.

Similar to an F1 weekend, there was a qualifying and the main race. In the qualifying, Tsunoda clocked in a time of 58:37 seconds. But, the Dutchman was quicker and started on the pole at a time of 55:07. However, Verstappen got a taste of how it feels to not be in his RB19, as his engine failed as soon as the lap started. Tsunoda successfully won the race in his AlphaTauri ‘Yukinator’.

Watch This Story: Fans Lash Out at FIA President’s Double Standards as Lewis Hamilton’s Controversial Abu Dhabi Defeat Grabs Limelight Again

Seeing Verstappen in such a situation does bring up some questions. Would he still be the reigning champion if not for Red Bull? Is this how Tsunoda would perform in equal machinery? But looking at the lighter side of things, the challenge looked so fun. And seeing the drivers not being in a high-pressure zone also brought out their humorous side.