Yuki Tsunoda makes sobering Max Verstappen assessment after latest horror

Yuki Tsunoda has explained how he is "not at the level" where he can adjust to sudden changes from the Red Bull, unlike team-mate Max Verstappen. 

Tsunoda was only 0.263s slower than Verstappen in Q1 at the Austrian Grand Prix, but whilst the world champion was safely through, Tsunoda was eliminated in Q1.

It is the third successive race he has fallen in Q1, and fourth time in five races, he has done so, with the Japanese driver explaining how a sudden and unexpected shift in the balance from the RB21 had caught him off guard, with Verstappen also claiming the car was "undriveable" in Q2.

"It is very frustrating, I was just not able to properly adjust on the second push lap, the first one felt good, and there is obviously always a perfect lap, so I could have done better, but the balance felt completely different between the first and second push laps," Tsunoda told media including RacingNews365.

"I'm just not able to put it all together in qualifying, it is not all the time, but I am just not able to execute properly in qualifying for several reasons, which is frustrating.

"I was expecting to be in Q3, the car felt good and the first push lap felt good, but somehow, with this stage that I am in, I'm happy with the confidence and I'm sure I'm heading in the right direction, but with this very narrow window with the car, you just have to be as consistent as possible.

"Max was reporting the same in Q2, but at least he knows this car, how to handle it, and even with the surprises, he can adapt within the lap.

"But I am not at the level where I can adjust fully in the lap or maximise the package, and it is not the level I was at with VCARB."

When then pushed by RacingNews365, Tsunoda confirmed that the RB21 has the narrowest operating window of any car he has driven, adding that: "I would say it is a difficult car, but it is not undriveable."