18/10/2024
NEWS STORY
Yuki Tsunoda and teammate Liam Lawson are both aware that they are potentially in a six-race shootout for the seat at Red Bull.
While the Faenza-based outfit eventually called time on Daniel Ricciardo, at Red Bull, Sergio Perez continues to disappoint.
Given a stay of execution over the summer break, it is fair to say that the Mexican has not exactly grabbed it with both hands.
Consequently, Tsunoda and his new teammate Lawson, have a clear incentive going into the remaining six races.
"I'm sure it will increase the kind of mentality of trying to not get beaten, but I guess that's natural," Tsunoda told reporters in Austin, the Japanese having been partnered by the New Zealander for five races in 2023.
"Maybe slightly a bit more spice on top of it than usual," he added, referring to the prospect that the remaining races will form part of the evaluation process, "but I think it was similar to last year as well. I know that those things are just floating around anyway.
"On my side, I just focus on what I have to do," he insisted, "and obviously Liam will do a good job as well. I'll make sure I'll be ahead of him, and hopefully we can achieve P6 in the team championship. That's the main goal."
"Obviously, Yuki has done a very good job the last couple of years, and especially this year, and he's the benchmark for obviously them to compare me against," admitted Lawson. "He's the only one in the same car as me, so I'll be directly compared with him. I guess the goal, or the expectation from them is for me to compete alongside him.
"In terms of where that sets me out for next year or in the future, I have absolutely no idea, but that's the target that's been set up."
While Lawson has been openly linked with Red Bull, it is only relatively recently that Tsunoda was mentioned in connection with promotion to the 'big team'.
However, in the Japanese driver's mind that was always the target and what spurred him on in his battle with his former teammates.
"I thought it's kind of like this situation already with Daniel," he said. "Those sort of things, it's always floating around anyway. To be honest, I got used to it and there's no point to talk about it.
"I just have to keep proving myself as a result and how I work throughout the race weekends; keep focusing on what I have to do and those opportunities, it's up to them and we'll see how it goes.
"You have to be ahead all the time," he admitted, "and that will be what depends on the next year's contract and everything. But it's always for me, it's part of the whole season and we built already until this point, including Daniel, that P6 right now in the teams' championship. If we weren't able to achieve those things, I would get very frustrated at the end of the season."
Asked about his chances of promotion, Lawson admitted: "That's very far ahead. Honestly, the target, or the goal that's been set out is the same as it's always been, since I was 17 and joined the program. It's all performance-based and that's basically how they'll be looking at it.
"It's not as simple as, like a position or, this is where I want to be," he continued. "I think it's scoring points, mainly for myself because that's what the team's going to judge me on, is how I perform, and the best way to do that is score points - also for the team fighting for P6 in the championship as well. Trying to get to the points as soon as possible for me is the goal."