(Motorsport-Total.com) – Yuki Tsunoda celebrates a surprising return to Formula 1 after an eight-month break and qualified twelfth for the sprint at the Dutch Grand Prix (follow live here in the ticker).
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The 26-year-old Japanese driver is taking over the cockpit at Racing Bulls on short notice this weekend after Isack Hadjar injured his wrist during the summer break. As part of the reshuffle, Liam Lawson temporarily moved up to Red Bull, while Tsunoda returned to Racing Bulls in his role as reserve driver for both teams.
With his performance in qualifying for the short-distance race, the returnee was “quite satisfied,” especially considering the extremely short preparation time.
After completing 35 laps in the only free practice and finishing 17th, still eight tenths behind his rookie teammate Arvid Lindblad, he continuously reduced this gap in the sprint qualifying: from 0.433 seconds in SQ1 to 0.360 seconds in SQ2.
Tsunoda feels like a rookie
For Tsunoda, it was his very first time driving the cars under the new 2026 regulations, whose engines require a completely different energy management and altered driving characteristics. “To be honest, everything really feels like being a rookie: the brake pressure, just everything is very different from last year,” Tsunoda explained after the session.
“And you have two sets of tires that you don’t want to damage immediately, so it was quite tricky. But in the end, I am quite satisfied with the performance in the sprint qualifying. Of course, there are still a few things I can improve, but with this format, you want to build it up step by step,” said the Japanese driver.
The last substitute driver appearances in Formula 1
The switch from the previous models to the new generation of cars demands a quick adjustment from Tsunoda. “I drove last year’s car, which was probably one of the fastest cars in history, right? And I really enjoyed the TPC tests (Testing of Previous Cars). But switching to this car feels completely different, especially in the fast corners,” he said.
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He also points to the general difficulties the field has with the regulations: “Maybe it’s not entirely fair to say it like that, but most drivers struggled a bit with the balance, braking performance, and the lost downforce compared to last year.”
The goal is to collect data
“So I have to adapt quickly,” said Tsunoda. “And on such a traditional track, there isn’t much space in the runoff areas. So you want to build it up step by step. But yes, I enjoyed this process.”
When asked how he specifically coped with the switch to the new regulations and energy management, the 26-year-old downplayed it and emphasized that these are very early stages of the learning process. On his 115th Grand Prix weekend, the focus is therefore primarily on data collection for the main decisions on Saturday and Sunday.
Since only the first eight drivers receive championship points in the 24-lap sprint race, Tsunoda mainly uses the battle to gain valuable long-run experience.
“My main goal is qualifying tomorrow. So far, I think I am doing quite well in improving from session to session. So I am looking forward to the long run tomorrow. That’s what I need to collect all the data before qualifying and the race.”
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