{"id":34437,"date":"2025-05-29T11:39:41","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T15:39:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=34437"},"modified":"2025-05-29T11:58:09","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T15:58:09","slug":"yuki-tsunoda-explains-learning-process-in-rb21","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/29\/yuki-tsunoda-explains-learning-process-in-rb21\/","title":{"rendered":"Yuki Tsunoda explains learning process in RB21"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/04\/26\/red-bull-pleased-with-yuki-tsunoda-initial-performance\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Yuki Tsunoda<\/a> will be frustrated with his points total in 2025 so far. Both at Red Bull and VCARB, a combination of factors have prevented the Japanese driver from achieving better results.<\/p>\n<p>In Australia and China, poor strategy from <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/27\/red-bulls-isack-hadjar-and-liam-lawson-conundrum\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">VCARB<\/a> threw away potential top 6 finishes.<\/p>\n<p>At Red Bull, meanwhile, misfortune in Jeddah and only having one run with fresh tyres in Japan qualifying have frustrated the 24-year-old.<\/p>\n<p>Still, Tsunoda will be the first to admit his performance is not at the level he wants.<\/p>\n<p>Looking ahead to this weekend&#8217;s Spanish GP. Tsunoda explains what he needs to address for his results to improve.<\/p>\n<h2>Tsunoda still adapting to the RB21<\/h2>\n<p>When Tsunoda was first promoted to Red Bull for the Japanese GP, there was no shortage of pressure &#8211; especially for his home race.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, though, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/04\/02\/liam-lawson-i-didnt-have-enough-time-at-red-bull\/\" target=\"_self\">Lawson&#8217;s tricky stint with the team<\/a> created a new appreciation for the challenge Tsunoda would face.<\/p>\n<p>All things considered, the #22 car has definitely shown flashes of being competitive enough to contend with the front-runners.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"9Ho9C_arRMVfx1n6exa75g\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2217651716\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'9Ho9C_arRMVfx1n6exa75g',sig:'CtzZyuPP6LX_Q1RvvQopBielHPuvcwwAKwBsmXGxhSo=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2217651716',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>However, a series of mistakes &#8211; especially in qualifying &#8211; have become limiting factors for Red Bull&#8217;s newest addition.<\/p>\n<p>There is also the issue of Tsunoda&#8217;s crash in Imola, which meant he competed in Monaco without the latest upgrades to the RB21.<\/p>\n<p>The next sequence of races before the summer break will be crucial if Tsunoda wants to establish himself at <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/27\/verstappen-red-bull-reveals-hopes-for-spain-technical-directive\/\" target=\"_self\">Red Bull<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Another mid-season swap can essentially be ruled out, but a few top five finishes would certainly help cement his position in the team.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to the media in Barcelona, he explained what he is is working on:<\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Understanding about the car is getting there.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;It comes down to experience. The last four years at [Racing Bulls] I know exactly what will happen, I can naturally react and drive fast.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Those things will come, Imola made me realise how little understanding I had.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&#8220;It&#8217;s not that I lost confidence, I just need to slowly build up.&#8221;<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a id=\"lOUTBNkYSl9OQxyno90V9A\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2217646649\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'lOUTBNkYSl9OQxyno90V9A',sig:'JhDUtx95bQapiDjlv-oR7Yh6Ig7nTbBGyQpEyGqpodI=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2217646649',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h4>A new variable for Red Bull to overcome<\/h4>\n<p>On paper, the Barcelona circuit is one of the most familiar for teams and drivers alike.<\/p>\n<p>Teams have plentiful data for the Spanish GP &#8211; having raced at the venue for almost two decades and often ran in Barcelona for pre-season testing.<\/p>\n<p>This weekend, however, the introduction of a new technical directive throws a spanner in the works for the entire field.<\/p>\n<p>The impact of this new flexi-wing regulation is difficult to assess, especially since teams have capitalised on aerolasticity to varying degrees.<\/p>\n<p>Still, it seems safe to assume it will have some effect on the grid.<\/p>\n<p>Even a relative loss of a few tenths of a second &#8211; for example, between Red Bull and McLaren &#8211; could have dramatic implications.<\/p>\n<p>In this sense, Tsunoda will be hopeful that Red Bull, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/05\/26\/red-bull-hit-key-target-ahead-of-the-spanish-gp\/\" target=\"_self\">who have spoken extensively about this directive<\/a>, will gain from the new regulations.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, the characteristics of the Barcelona circuit should be more suited to the RB21 than Monte Carlo.<\/p>\n<p>Should this materialise, it should give Tsunoda slightly more margin for error in his endeavours with the Milton Keynes squad.<\/p>\n<p><em>Main photo: Clive Rose\/Getty Images (via Red Bull content pool)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Yuki Tsunoda will be frustrated with his points total in 2025 so far. Both at Red Bull and VCARB, a combination of factors have prevented the Japanese driver from achieving better results. In Australia and China, poor strategy from VCARB threw away potential top 6 finishes. At Red Bull, meanwhile, misfortune in Jeddah and only [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":34438,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[2452,2455,78,2394],"class_list":["post-34437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-f1-2025-season","tag-rb21","tag-red-bull-racing","tag-tsunoda"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34437","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34437"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34437\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34441,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34437\/revisions\/34441"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}