“Today was the first time I drove the track here in Portugal and I really enjoyed it” – Yuki Tsunoda

The Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda The team did not maximize the points scored in the first two races of the season. The AlphaTauri team has a fast car and has the potential to battle for third place against the Scuderia Ferrari and McLaren F1 teams. The Italian team is fifth in the constructors’ championship, but could have scored more points.

Yuki Tsunoda in its debut season has shown lightning bolts of rough speed. Tsunoda did its share of rookie mistakes and is guilty of throwing points away. The Japanese driver drove for the first time on Autódromo Internacional do Algarve Track. The conditions were slippery and the strong winds make it difficult for the drivers.

Tsunoda only finished thirteenth and fourteenth in the two training sessions as he faced difficult conditions on a new track. Feeling like he was getting better and better, Tsunoda said, “Today was the first time I’ve ridden the track here in Portugal and I really enjoyed it – especially the ups and downs of the track – and I have learned a little bit in the two sessions today.

“There are a lot of new elements to understand, there are very low grip levels compared to Bahrain and Imola. At first I struggled to adjust to this, but I think I managed to learn pretty quickly and my progress over the day was good. I’m building up the pace in the car and tonight I will go over the data with my engineers, analyze the car’s setup and then I hope to put it together for qualifying tomorrow. “

Pierre Gasly: ​​”We really have problems compared to the last few races.”

Pierre Gasly started where it left off last season. Gasly has consistently qualified in the top 10 and qualified in fifth place in the first two races of the new season. The Frenchman only has a seventh place and six points.

An unfortunate collision on the first laps resulted in a DNF in the first race. If Gasly and his team-mate Tsunoda stay flawless and maximize the potential in the car, the team can really fight for third place in the constructors’ championship.

Gasly finished sixth in free practice two and said, “It’s been a pretty difficult day, the car doesn’t feel that good so tonight we have to analyze everything and see what we have to do to improve We are currently not using our full potential. Compared to the last few races we have big problems braking in the low speed areas so we need to see what we have changed. Obviously the conditions and layout are very different here – it’s quite slippery – so we may need to make some other adjustments than usual.

“The midfield is so tight at the moment that we have to work a lot tonight to find extra time for tomorrow. Two or three tenths right now you can lose six or seven places if you get into qualifying, so it really matters. I think I’ve been in the last five or six races in the third quarter so I really want to keep that move and I’m confident that we can make some changes tonight so that can happen again tomorrow. ”

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