Team boss believes in Tsunoda: 'I've never doubted it'

In 2021 Tsunoda will make his debut in Formula 1. After a stellar first performance in Bahrain with points in his first race, a lesser period follows with many crashes. Tost finds it logical that this happens to the Japanese driver. He has to find the limit.

Mistakes from the rookie

''I personally didn't have any doubts about it. Nowadays you have to give a rookie some time when you put him in Formula 1. The sport is so complex, it's so tricky that you can't expect a young driver to immediately show the experienced guys the way. So far Yuki has done reasonably well. He's fast, finished sixth in Hungary and finished ninth in his very first race in Bahrain,'' says Tost to Motorsport.com.

''Of course, he has had some crashes, but I always say that the crash period is part of the learning process. How can someone find the limit if he is not allowed to crash? I do hope that crash period is over now.''

Tsunoda in unknown territory

This will not be easy for Tsunoda as he will be racing on tracks that are completely new to him. In Bahrain and Hungary he was able to find his way around, but in America, Mexico, Brazil and Turkey he will be racing on new tracks where all his competitors already know the circuit.

''All those young drivers don't know America, Mexico or Sao Paulo. The same goes for Turkey, while Saudi Arabia is new for everyone. So we have a lot of work to do to get him up to speed. But he can learn a lot from Pierre, who is one of the fastest drivers on the grid these days. He can compare the data and with his talent, I think he should be able to close the gap pretty quickly,'' concludes the AlpaTauri team boss.