22 hours Ago By Reuters,Agence France-Presse
Yuki Tsunoda said he had not been offered any guarantees about how long he would stay at Red Bull but was confident he could rise to the challenge, even if he was not promising to match teammate Max Verstappen from day one. The 24-year-old was catapulted into the Red Bull seat for his home Japanese Grand Prix after the team decided to drop Liam Lawson back to Racing Bulls after only two races of the season. “I got the first call after China from [team principal] Christian [Horner], just to be prepared that things might change,” he told reporters at Suzuka on Thursday.
“It can’t be crazier than this situation, first race with Red Bull Racing, but also on top of it in a home grand prix – it’s the best situation ever.” Tsunoda earned his elevation by qualifying in the top 10 in the first two races of the season and earning three points for Racing Bulls, but he was quick to dampen expectations of anything like a podium finish at Suzuka on Sunday. “I’m not saying it’s confidence that I can perform straight away like Max,” he added.
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