Tsunoda: 'I am not afraid to make mistakes, they are inevitable'

In 2021 we will see three new faces on the Formula 1 grid, the youngest being AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda. The 20-year-old Japanese driver says he is not afraid to make mistakes despite his age.

Learning from your mistakes

Tsunoda replaces Daniil Kvyat at AlphaTauri and will be Pierre Gasly's teammate in 2021. The Japanese driver feels no extra pressure as he is the youngest on the grid. "This will be my rookie season and I will be pushing hard right from the beginning to adapt to the car as much as possible", he said on his team's website.

"I’m not afraid to make mistakes – I will, of course, try and limit them – but they are inevitable at the beginning", Tsunoda continued. Tsunoda does not see making mistakes as a bad thing, as he believes he can learn from them. He already proved this in Formula 2.

First Japanese driver in F1 since 2014

Tsunoda will become the first Japanese on the grid since 2014, something he is very proud of. "I am really happy to have the support of Japanese fans, and I’m proud to be the one to bring another Japanese driver on the grid, after Kamui Kobayashi in 2014. As for the pressure, I put it on myself."