AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda secured the bonus point for the fastest lap at the Formula 1 race in Austin. But the late stop almost gave him a heart attack.
Yuki Tsunoda says he almost suffered a “heart attack” when his AlphaTauri team asked him to pit on the penultimate lap of the US Grand Prix. The Japanese driver initially thought there was something wrong with his car before realizing that the fastest lap was at stake.
Tsunoda was in tenth place in the final laps of the race when a pit stop window opened behind him because his pursuer Alex Albon received a time penalty due to track limits.
This gave Tsunoda the opportunity to make a free stop to switch to the soft tires. The AlphaTauri driver earned the bonus point for the fastest lap on the very last lap, while remaining in tenth place.
Tsunoda feared a problem with the AlphaTauri
After the checkered flag, the disqualifications of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc saw him move up to eighth place, giving him a total of five points and exactly doubling the team’s total points total for the season.
“To be honest, I had a heart attack when I had to pit,” admits Tsunoda. “I thought it was a problem with the engine. After I heard we had the fastest lap, I was relieved, but I was still under a bit of pressure, but it worked out in the end, so it was good.”
While drivers like Hamilton and Max Verstappen have often fought for the fastest lap after late stops, this was a first for Tsunoda.
“Yes, it was probably the first time that I was fighting for the fastest lap on the last lap,” says the 23-year-old. “I really enjoyed it.”
Tsunoda: Third Japanese with fastest lap
“I had to pay a lot of attention to the tires beforehand, and then going straight into qualifying mode was pretty exciting. But at the same time I enjoyed it,” he says.
“The amount of grip was amazing. Of course I gave it 100 percent. The engine probably wasn’t 100 percent, we couldn’t fully charge the battery. But yes, I pushed at least 100 percent.”
Tsunoda admits: “This route is physically very demanding. So it was pretty tough, but I was able to just refocus and improve the time significantly.”
This makes him the third Japanese after Satoru Nakajima (Adelaide 1989) and Kamui Kobayashi (Shanghai 2012) with the fastest race lap.
Tsunoda praises AlphaTauri: “One point is a big difference”
The result is a tribute to the team members who helped to further develop the car. “Yes, definitely, especially the people who work in the background in Faenza and Bicester and try to improve our package as much as possible race by race,” the AlphaTauri driver praises his team.
“We are making progress step by step and I definitely have the feeling that we are getting closer to tenth place. I had a bit of luck towards the end of the race to get into the points. But like in this race, anything can happen. “
The result moved AlphaTauri to within two points of Haas and six points of Alfa Romeo in the constructors’ championship.
“One point is a big difference,” says Tsunoda. “So congratulations to the team. There are still four races to go so we have to maximize our package and see how it goes.”