Yuki Tsunoda rues ‘stupid mistake’ that led to massive crash in F1 qualifying

Shortly after qualifying began at the Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, it was over for Yuki Tsunoda.

The Red Bull driver veered off the racing line and into the gravel at the precarious Villeneuve chicane, with his RB21 flipping into the barrier before coming to a rest right-side up. The crash brought out the red flag, leading to an extended delay in Q1.

You can see Tsunoda’s massive crash here:

Tsunoda was able to exit the RB21 and walk unassisted to the medical car, where he was taken to the care center for a precautionary evaluation. The Red Bull driver was cleared and released, allowing him to speak with the media after the session.

“I’m okay, thankfully,” Tsunoda reported to the official F1 channel after he was cleared by the care team. “But at the same time, it’s very frustrating how I ended up [eliminated] in such an early stage, especially in a very unnecessary situation.”

Red Bull’s newest driver conceded that his form has been “up and down” from session to session.

“It’s kind of up and down,” Tsunoda said of his time at Red Bull. “Some sessions I feel okay, some sessions suddenly I’ve dropped a lot.”

“FP3 was to be honest a big mystery, how I ended up,” continued Tsunoda. “Obviously, the lap, [I was not] able to put it all together, but at the same time it was pretty poor pace. We don’t know exactly why.”

Tsunoda then pointed to a “stupid mistake” that ended his day early.

“We made a lot of changes and it felt pretty good in the first turn, turn two, turn three, and then I crashed immediately after. So it’s just a shame, I feel like the car was quite there and just put myself into the wall with such a stupid mistake.”

Tsunoda’s crash left him 20th on the grid for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, but the significant damage to the RB21 likely means a pit lane start is in his future.