AlphaTauri drivers reassuring after Tost’s criticisms towards his technicians
Yuki Tsunoda stated that he doesn't feel "any negative energy" within the AlphaTauri team, despite a disappointing start to the season and the criticisms from Franz Tost, the team's boss.
It’s been a rather challenging start to the season for the Italian team, as they have only scored a single point in the first three races of the season. Within their ranks, rookie Nyck de Vries and Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda are struggling to prove themselves in their third season in F1.
A difficult start to the season marked by a statement from the team principal, Franz Tost, who declared that he no longer trusted his engineers due to the lack of progress made since last season. But according to Tsunoda, at AlphaTauri, they still maintain morale despite this challenging start. “We are obviously not satisfied with our performance, but at least we remain positive,” said the Japanese driver when asked about his boss’s comments.
“A good atmosphere within the team”
Contrary to his Austrian director, the driver assures that he still has confidence in his team: “We are quite satisfied with what we have achieved on the track, we have virtually exploited 100% of the car’s performance, which is the most important. We are also aware of the direction we need to take in terms of development.”
On the track engineering side, we give 100% effort to improve the car, and on the development side, in Faenza, they know what they have to do. As a team, it’s a good thing that we are all heading in the same direction, so I remain positive. We are always aiming for points.
The native of Kanagawa reassured after Franz Tost’s departure, stating that he didn’t feel any negative energy within the team. These remarks were confirmed by his teammate Nyck de Vries: the atmosphere within the team is truly good.
In the latest episode of the podcast “Beyond The Grid,” Yuki Tsunoda opened up about the very difficult moment he had in Tost’s office last year after colliding with his teammate Gasly at Silverstone. Hopefully, both him and de Vries will be able to meet their boss’s expectations. Currently, AlphaTauri is at the bottom of the constructor standings, tied with the Williams team (1 point).
