Why Tsunoda feels ‘like a rookie’ ahead of his second Racing Bulls outing of the season

When Yuki Tsunoda was told he would be driving for Racing Bulls at the Dutch Grand Prix, he was on holiday on a beach in Greece and had to rush to prepare for the outing at Zandvoort. He felt so unprepared that he approached the weekend like a rookie.

By the time the Italian Grand Prix came around, Tsunoda had already been working in the simulator in case Isack Hadjar remained sidelined. Despite having a race weekend in the car under his belt and more time to prepare, he still feels like a rookie given the complexity of energy deployment at Monza.

“It was actually yesterday,” Tsunoda said on Thursday when asked when he had learned the news. “I was in the sim just in case. I really didn't know until mid-afternoon, and I heard in the middle of the session. ‘OK, I’m going to drive, so I’ll keep doing the simulator work as I would in a race week.’”

Zandvoort went about as well as could have been expected, given Tsunoda’s unfamiliarity with the car and the demands of a Sprint weekend. After finishing a solid P11, he received positive feedback from Team Principal Alan Permane.

“[It was] positive for sure,” the Japanese racer confirmed. “And even after the debrief, I said, ‘Good luck this season, I enjoyed it,’ or something. Alan said, ‘We might need you again – we might need you again next week. So be prepared.’

“I could tell that I felt some more trust from him after that race. If I did really bad, and anything can happen with this world, maybe I wouldn't get called to drive this week. So yeah, I think this was very positive.”

Although final confirmation came late, Tsunoda had spent the days after Zandvoort assuming he might be needed. He therefore focused on training, working with the Faenza engineers and running in the simulator.

“I was pretty much really chilled, like a usual race week. I was more prepared, I would say, than the week before in the Netherlands, because it all happened suddenly, and now after Isack was injured, I was more prepared.

“So that was probably the healthiest one week I spent in 2026 so far! So yeah, I was really prepared. I'm feeling more ready than ever.”

The biggest challenge now is energy deployment around Monza, an area where Tsunoda lacks the race experience of the drivers who have competed throughout this season, taking in the long straights at places like Shanghai and Spa-Francorchamps.

“I think Netherlands was fortunately one of the easiest tracks I would say to manage the energy, and I can say that I was able to adjust to the car pretty smoothly," said Tsunoda.

“But now it's the most difficult track for that energy deployment, and I already experienced in the simulator how different it is, and really kicks in these challenges of these regulations.

“So yeah, the management, brake early or whatever, those things I really have to practice. And in the simulator, it felt really weird, because I know I can drive faster – but you cannot, because otherwise in total lap time, you'll be slow. So that will be the biggest challenge for me.”

Being quick over a single lap is one thing, but Tsunoda must also adjust to the tactical, energy-management battles that were less prominent at Zandvoort.

“I think it will be more challenging in race condition,” he admitted. “Because this kind of strategic, I would say, battle with the energy management with other cars, I didn't do that, and probably other [drivers] know what the car is going to do after they use the battery to overtake or defend. I only know from the simulator, and the Netherlands was probably the least powerful.

“In short runs I would say I'm not worried as much, because you have free practice anyway, so you know what kind of things, and you can only focus on yourself. But in the race, you have to be proactive, right? So that's the only thing that I have to be more prepared for sure than the Netherlands.”

Tsunoda is hoping to take a step forward from Zandvoort, with a place in Q3 and points on Sunday his ideal scenario. However, he knows it will not be easy.

"I will see for FP1 these energy things, how difficult it is. I really don't know. But I think the car pace is good, and we’re bringing an upgrade here, so I am excited to see that.

“I think the Netherlands was more like I just entered the race a bit like a rookie, so I just tried to learn as much as possible. The time was very tight because of the Sprint format.

“I have to practice a lot of things, like energy deployments, and even over one lap to be patient. I would say I feel like I'm a rookie, and I have to try and learn everything, and try to not miss any single thing that the team is instructing me.”

He also has a special reason to want a good result this weekend: “I want to do well here – I’ve never done well here. Out of five years, I have three DNFs, two I didn't even start. So I don't know what's going on with here, but getting this opportunity, hopefully it’s lucky.”