22

Yuki Tsunoda

Team AlphaTauri
Country Japan
Podiums N/A
Points 47
Grands Prix entered 58
World Championships N/A
Highest race finish 4 (x1)
Highest grid position 7
Date of birth 11/05/2000
Place of birth Sagamihara, Japan

Biography

In the entire history of Formula 1, no Japanese driver has ever won a World Championship Grand Prix. Could Yuki Tsunoda be the first? Red Bull certainly think so, with the youngster very much on the path to their senior team if he continues to impress as he has done over the past few years.

Tsunoda's ascent to the top tier of motorsport was astonishingly rapid: he went from racing in Japanese F4 to a Formula 1 seat with AlphaTauri in just over three years, having arrived in Europe in 2019 with no knowledge of the circuits.

But after a slow start in F3, followed by a hugely impressive debut F2 campaign that saw him finish third in the championship and pick up three wins along the way, Tsunoda proved he had the speed and the race craft to force his way on to the F1 grid.

He may not have adapted to Grand Prix racing quite as quickly as he did to F2, but given time he could yet find himself battling at the very sharp end in a Red Bull.