Yuki Tsunoda believes he would have led the Brazilian Grand Prix had the security automotive and subsequent purple flags not been referred to as for at Interlagos.
The Japanese driver was one among a choose few to go for a change to excessive moist tyres as rain pelted the Sao Paulo circuit, with he and team-mate Liam Lawson at one stage lapping sooner than these round them by virtually 5 seconds per lap.
However with others making an attempt to courageous it out on intermediates because the deluge acquired heavier, race management had no various aside from to ship the security automotive out on monitor, a neutralisation that turned a full red-flag stoppage as soon as Franco Colapinto had crashed his Williams catching as much as the pack after a pitstop.
Tsunoda, who was working third earlier than his pitstop, misplaced out with F1’s guidelines permitting free of charge tyre adjustments beneath purple flag circumstances and would ultimately end eighth on the street – a consequence that was upgraded to seventh courtesy of a 10-second penalty for McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who had earlier punted Lawson right into a spin at Flip 1.
“I believe what we did, switching to excessive, that was good,” defined Tsunoda.
“Simply the security automotive and the purple flag got here out, that was the purpose that went very down. If the purple flag did not come out, most likely I’d, sooner or later, have overtaken a whole lot of automobiles and possibly [been] P1, but it surely simply did not come in the direction of us.”
Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Crew VCARB 01
Photograph by: Crimson Bull Content material Pool
Lawson additionally scored factors as RB locks right into a struggle for sixth within the constructors’ standings, albeit dropping floor to double podium-scoring Alpine.
Having burdened the significance of the consequence for the Faenza-based staff, Tsunoda added: “It wasn’t simple circumstances. In the event you lose focus, [it can have] a whole lot of penalties.
“I loved the final stint, good struggle with Oscar [Piastri]. I attempted to be inside 10 seconds. You understand, might have finished a whole lot of issues unsuitable, however saved it clear and tried to attain P7, which is nice.”