Yuki Tsunoda outlines lack of communication as one of the reasons for being overcut by teammate Liam Lawson in the USGP

Yuki Tsunoda believes that inadequate communication between him and his engineers cost him a potential points finish at the 2024 US Grand Prix. Speaking to Sportskeeda, the Japanese driver expressed frustration with the strategy VCARB employed which ultimately allowed his teammate Liam Lawson to overcut him during the race.

Starting in ninth, Tsunoda was running as high as eighth, ahead of Red Bull’s Sergio Perez. However, an early pit stop put him back into traffic, hindering his ability to extract the best performance from his hard tires and leaving him to finish in 14th place. He attributed this result to poor communication with the pit wall, which led him to follow the team’s call without questioning the timing. The decision to pit early put him into dirty air, compromising his race pace.

Tsunoda felt that the early pit stop caused him to lose positions and allowed his teammate, who started on the hard compound, to run a longer stint and execute an overcut strategy. Lawson’s late switch to the medium tires, which performed better towards the end of the race, made it easier for him to surge through the grid, while Tsunoda struggled after being released into traffic. Lawson’s strategy allowed him to finish in ninth place, scoring his first points of the 2024 season, while Tsunoda missed out on what could have been a stronger result.

Asked by Sportkseeda if the pitstop pushed him way down the order than expected, Tsunoda replied:

“I mean I was stuck behind the all the time in cars and I didn't able to use about free air. I mean l still understand those people who started behind and then you know hard tire able to extend and I mean you can make it extend quite a lot, and he actually [Liam] overcut me. So I didn’t able to communicate properly between engineers and myself. I didn't really get questions about how the tires feed back and everything. So I just got told that I have to pit, so I just went to it.”

Tsunoda expressed frustration over his late-race off-track spin, believing it should not have happened.

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Yuki Tsunoda acknowledges he can’t afford any driver errors

Despite a strong start, Yuki Tsunoda was overtaken by drivers like Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez, who extended their stints on medium tires. Tsunoda criticized his team’s decision to pit him for a tire change after just 18 laps, which cost him multiple positions. He acknowledged that while the strategy was questionable, his mistake compounded the issue, adding to the disappointment of the race.

Describing his race in Austin, Tsunoda said:

“Yeah, we started P8, it was a good start and we just followed, we just probably followed too much other cars and I mean, when I recognised, I mean, the person, the the people who, drivers who started behind and extending along, especially also Hülkenberg as well, are able to manage to do that. So to be honest, yeah, definitely something to look at, look at there and I mean, shouldn't happen like that. But also, that's that, and my mistake was definitely shouldn't happen like that. But also, that's that, and my mistake was definitely there. So definitely combine and myself definitely shouldn't happen like that in that moment.”

Tsunoda showed a strong pace throughout the US Grand Prix weekend, except for Q1 in the main qualifying session. With 22 of VCARB’s total 36 points, Tsunoda has been a key contributor to the team’s seventh position in the Constructors’ Championship. However, outperforming teammate Liam Lawson will be crucial for Tsunoda, as both drivers are vying for potential promotion to Red Bull’s senior team. The battle will likely intensify over the next five races as VCARB lost sixth place in the standings to Haas, which now leads by two points after Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen scored in the sprint race.