How Tsunoda is adapting to unusual Racing Bulls responsibility

Yuki Tsunoda has no doubt he can carry the unusual mantle of being a team leader going into the new F1 season.

Approaching his fifth year with the junior Red Bull team, the Japanese driver is the outright number one driver.

Following his debut year in 2021, Tsunoda spent the following year still learning from the more experienced Pierre Gasly.

Going into season three, Tsunoda was partnered by rookie Nyck de Vries before the Dutchman was jettisoned in favour of the returning and highly experienced Daniel Ricciardo.

With Ricciardo retained for last year, it is fair to suggest the Australian had the edge over Tsunoda in terms of leadership, only to be axed after the Singapore Grand Prix.

After being overlooked for the second Red Bull seat alongside Max Verstappen this season, with Liam Lawson given the nod, Tsunoda will now be partnered by rookie Isack Hadjar.

With four years of experience under his belt, much will be expected of Tsunoda to lead the team on track and off, and to steer Hadjar in the right direction in terms of the French-Algerian driver's own learning.

As to what he has learned himself from his time in F1 so far that will stand him in good stead this year, speaking to RacingNews365, Tsunoda said: "Definitely, how I control a situation, the radio communication, the feedback, especially my technical feedback.

"I feel more of a team leader, and as a team leader you want to help the team locate the direction we want to take, on the development side, but also on the mentality side.

"Those things, along with my behaviour on the track, will affect quite a lot, including the results."

Tsunoda knows he has so much more to give

Tsunoda at least felt he made strong progress in 2024, notably regarding his temperament, especially over the radio given many previous outbursts that landed him in hot water.

Although failing to land a seat he has long desired at Red Bull, he feels well-equipped to lead Racing Bulls this term.

"With those things, with what I've been doing, I'm pretty happy, which gives me extra confidence ahead of each race for the team to perform well," said Tsunoda.

"It's something I will definitely be carrying into the as well. At the same time, I'm not saying this is my 100 per cent performance. I know I can improve much more, race by race, as I'm still learning.

"But with this kind of approach and mentality, I'll just keep doing it this year."