Tsunoda feels ‘amazing’ after ending unwanted track record

Yuki Tsunoda has detailed he feels “amazing” after scoring his maiden Formula 1 points on home soil.

The Kanagawa-born driver took part in his third home event on Sunday and crossed the line in 10th place to secure a solitary point.

It marked his first tangible reward from the Japanese GP after classifying 13th and 12th in 2022 and 2023 respectively.

Tsunoda credited the RB pit stop crew for his result as they managed to leap Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll in the pit lane when called in for his final pit stop on lap 22.

“[I’m] feeling amazing, after such a long two years that I've been unable to score points,” Tsunoda told media including RacingNews365.

“It’s a very happy feeling and a big credit to the team who did a fantastic job in the pitstops to be able to rejoin the track in front of the Aston Martin.

“Without that, I wouldn’t be able to score points. Big credit to the teams and also the Japanese fans.

“I feel more support every year. It's a good thing and I just have to keep matching the expectation.”

Tsunda looking to further gains

Tsunoda has been RB’s star performer during the opening four rounds with team-mate Daniel Ricciardo struggling for pace.

Having bagged two consecutive point-scoring results, the Japanese driver is targeting further improvements for the remainder of the season.

“Hopefully, I can have a very strong fight against even the top five teams,” Tsunoda stated.

“But as a team we’re currently building the base to have a better step forward in the future. We have pretty good confidence that we can achieve points.

“I think we've had a good start already, scoring [at] two races in a row. I’ll just keep doing what I'm doing and see where it goes in the future.”