Yuki Tsunoda: “The different format has made things slightly more difficult for me as a rookie”

Yuki Tsunoda was pleased to come away from the British Grand Prix with a point, despite the whole Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda team having a below-par weekend at Silverstone.

The Japanese racer had started well down the field after being eliminated in Q1 on Friday evening and making up only one spot during Saturday’s first-ever Sprint Qualifying race.  Tsunoda says the change from the regular weekend format did not help him as a rookie.

But Tsunoda kept his focus on race day and was able to find his way into the top ten when it mattered for his fourth top-ten finish of the season.

“I’m quite happy to have come away with a point today,” said Tsunoda.  “I tried to stick to the plan, really focus on tyre management, and I think I achieved that well.

“I’ve struggled a bit throughout the weekend and the different format has made things slightly more difficult for me as a rookie, so I’m pleased to have come away with an all-important point for the team.”

“It’s very frustrating to be coming away with no points” – Pierre Gasly

Team-mate Pierre Gasly was on course for a top ten finish but saw his chances of points disappear when he suffered a puncture, with the subsequent pit stop leaving him eleventh at the chequered flag.

The Frenchman had a quiet weekend by his standards but felt he was able to take some positives away from Silverstone, particularly as he was able to show some strong pace when running alone midway through the race.

But Gasly knows the team will have to work out why they were not fighting where they normally would at Silverstone ahead of the next round of the season in Hungary.

“Honestly, I have no words,” said Gasly.  “We were in the points right until the end, then unfortunately I had a puncture and had to box with five laps to go. It’s very frustrating to be coming away with no points after today’s race.

“There are still some positives to take away though, as after quite a difficult weekend, the pace when I was alone in the middle of the race today was quite good, once I’d managed to clear the traffic.

“We obviously want to continue to fight for better positions, so we’ll work hard to understand the areas we’ve struggled with this weekend and hope to be more competitive again in Hungary.”

Pierre Gasly lost a points finish late on due to a puncture – Credit: Michael Regan/Getty Images