Yuki Tsunoda ‘confident’ ahead of 2025 F1 season

Formula 1 roars back to life this week.

Starting Wednesday all ten teams, and all 20 drivers, will be in action at Bahrain International Circuit, for pre-season testing. This gives teams and drivers a chance to put their 2025 challengers through the paces, and get prepared for the 2025 campaign.

While some drivers are getting acclimated with new teams — or with F1 itself in the case of the incoming rookie class of drivers — that is not the case for Yuki Tsunoda. Set to begin his fifth F1 season Tsunoda is now the veteran presence at Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, as the team welcomes one of those rookies, Isack Hadjar.

In fact, Tsunoda even has some experience coaching his new teammate.

“I’m still getting to know Isack but I know he has done a really good job in the junior categories, especially in Formula Two last year,” said Tsunoda in the team’s 2025 press kit. “I think I met him for the first time in 2018, when there was a collaboration between the French federation (FFSA) and the Honda Junior Programme. Isack came to Suzuka for a Honda selection process and I was already a Honda driver and it was my job to be a sort of coach for the others. It’s funny that several years later we are going to be teammates!”

As for how Tsunoda is approaching his fifth season in F1, the driver is looking to improve his communication with the team, as well as his overall consistency.

“I am hoping that my fifth season in Formula One will be an extension of how the past years have gone, always making progress,” said Tsunoda. “I plan to nail it down even more, to be a more complete driver, especially in two areas: aiming to improve how I communicate and to perform more consistently. I’d say that applies not just to how I tackle the races, but also outside of the actual racing itself.”

Tsunoda finished 12th in the F1 Drivers’ Championship in 2024, his best finish since joining the grid for the 2021 season. His best weekend was perhaps the Miami Grand Prix, when he finished in the points in both the F1 Sprint Race (P8) and the Miami Grand Prix itself (P7).

Consistency is also at the forefront of Tsunoda’s mind regarding what he hopes to get from the team, and the VCARB 02, in 2025.

“We lacked some consistency last year, the car could be good at one track, but not the same at the next one. Of course, there were races where I felt I could have done better, but in general, we were also lacking a little bit when it came to in-season development, compared to our closest rivals,” added Tsunoda. “We caught up right at the end, but it was not enough. Ideally, we need a good start to the season, as we had last year, but then we need to make sure we push on developing the car over the course of the year. I believe that will be the key to making progress.”

Still, VCARB’s veteran driver feels “confident” heading into the 2025 campaign.

“At the very least, I expect to start this season where I ended the last one. By the end of last year, I had a stronger mindset and had more control than at the beginning of the season,” added Tsunoda. “After that, I want to be even more focused and work on improving the small margins. That can make the difference and allow us to continue fighting in the top 10, in what I expect to be an even tighter contest this year. I’ll take it step by step, but I’m feeling confident.”

Tsunoda and Hadjar will be in action Wednesday when three days of pre-season testing kicks off in Bahrain.