Yuki Tsunoda Vents Frustration Over Race-Ending Nico Hulkenberg Crash

Saajan Jogia | Sep 1, 2024

May 2, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; RB racing driver Yuki Tsunoda (22) walks into the team village in advance of the F1 Miami Grand Prix at the Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports / Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

VCARB driver Yuki Tsunoda has expressed frustration over the incident with Nico Hulkenberg that caused him to retire from the Italian Grand Prix. Though the German driver attracted a 10-second penalty for causing the incident, Tsunoda insisted it was "not enough" to justify his DNF race result.

Hulkenberg's Haas VF-24 collided with Tsunoda's RB 01 at the opening chicane, causing significant damage to Tsunoda's car and forcing him to retire. The Japanese driver later learned that Hulkenberg had been involved in an earlier incident with his teammate, Daniel Ricciardo, which had forced the Haas driver off track at Ascari.

While the Australian driver received a 5-second penalty for his antics, Hulkenberg might have taken his revenge on the wrong VCARB driver, as Tsunoda pointed out. He told the media:

“He seemed hot-headed.

“But wrong person, if it’s that.”

Unfortunately for Ricciardo, he later received another 10-second penalty for failing to serve that initial one properly, since a mechanic touched the front wing as he entered his pit box.

Tsunoda voiced his frustration over Hulkenberg, criticizing the lenient penalty given for the incident that led to his retirement. He explained that he found himself in a position where he could do little to avoid the collision. He said:

“What I know is a white car trying to overtake from the inside, pretty far away, and with massive white smoke and just losing control and smashing into me.

“I tried to give the space as much as possible, but in the end, he just came straight, so nothing I could have done.”

When asked if the 10-second penalty did enough justice, Tsunoda said:

“Let’s see. If he scores points, it’s not enough. And if he’s not scored points, I mean, it’s still not enough.

“But, hopefully, he needs penalty points on top of it. I hope he does. I don’t know if it automatically comes with the 10 seconds.

“My head right now is not in the right place I guess, pretty frustrated.”

Tsunoda had hoped to see penalty points added to Hulkenberg's superlicence apart from the ten-second time penalty. Surprisingly, his wish came true as two points were applied to the 37-year-old's superlicence.

Since Formula 1's return after the summer break, Tsunoda has struggled to outperform his teammate Ricciardo, as he had done previously. At the Italian Grand Prix qualifying, he secured the 16th position, while his teammate qualified 12th. As per VCARB's website, here's what he had to say after qualifying:

“It was tough today. Yesterday we started pretty far off the pace, and then session by session we managed to close the gap towards the midfield, but unfortunately, it’s clearly not enough. I’m frustrated, there are some things unclear, so we need to understand what’s going on, as throughout the weekend we don’t have an easy car to drive.

"I’m pretty happy with the lap I did in qualifying, but I think we’re still missing something, as generally this weekend I’m feeling a lack of pace. There are differences across the cars, so surely there are a lot of things to learn. I’ll do my best tomorrow.”