AlphaTauri showed off its new Formula 1 car livery on Saturday, with Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda leaving no doubt as to what the Red Bull-owned team has in store for him this season. Tsunoda will begin his third year with the Italy-based team, which unveiled during Fashion Week at New York’s Lincoln Center to promote the energy drink company’s apparel brand.
“Last year Yuki had problems with the car,” said AlphaTauri team boss Franz Tost in a press release on the digital unveiling of the AT04 car. “I expect we’ll have a pretty competitive car this year and Yuki always has to aim to be in qualifying 3 (the final stage) and finish the races in the points.
“He is a very accomplished driver and has a lot of experience now with two seasons in Formula 1. Of course, for that he needs to score a lot more points than last year.” Tsunoda scored 12 points from 22 races, while his French team-mate Pierre Gasly bagged 23 points.
In 2021, Tsunoda scored 32 points to Gasly’s 110. The 22-year-old Japanese said he’s worked hard on his physical condition over the past season and has regained confidence that had waned in 2021.
He is now working alongside Australian Daniel Ricciardo’s old coach Michael Italiano and attending a winter training camp in Dubai. “I’m on a whole different level now,” Tsunoda said.
“I definitely have more control, I’m more involved with the team when it comes to developing the car and I also approach things differently as I’ve learned many things, not only in racing but also in my life off the track . “I underestimated what it was all about, but now I’ve figured out what’s really important.”
Gasly has since switched to Renault-owned Alpine, being replaced by Dutch driver Nyck de Vries, who is far more experienced than the average rookie. The 28-year-old scored on his debut as a substitute for Williams at Monza last season and won the 2021 electric Formula E Championship.
AlphaTauri was ninth of the 10 teams in 2022, compared to sixth in 2021. Tost, now the second longest-serving F1 team boss after Red Bull’s Christian Horner, said he expected the field to draw closer together this season and De Vries no time to waste gonna get up to speed.
The season starts in Bahrain on March 5th.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
