Tsunoda leading a GP? 'I didn't know it myself!'

In the final Grand Prix of the 2023 season, Yuki Tsunoda made history: he was only the second Japanese ever to lead an F1 race after Takuma Sato at the European Grand Prix in 2004. A fine new chapter in the Asian country's motorsport book, although it had completely slipped past the AlphaTauri driver himself.

In conversation with the media - including GPblog - Tsunoda revealed after the finish flag fell in Abu Dhabi that he did not initially know he was the frontrunner: "I gave it everything. To be honest, I didn't know I was leading the pack, so I'm quite surprised about it," laughed the Japanese driver.

In the end, Tsunoda finished eighth in the race. So points again, indicating what a huge turnaround AlphaTauri managed to achieve in the second half of the season: "Looking back, first half of the season, we never thought about leading so massive improvements, and without the team effort, we couldn't have achieved this. The amount they pushed this year was almost every race we had an upgrade and it was crazy! They [the team] deserved it."

Tribute to Franz Tost

Tsunoda then mentions Franz Tost by name. The man who gave the Japanese driver a chance in Formula 1 said goodbye as team boss after Abu Dhabi. Thanks in part to the many points Tsunoda accumulated in recent weeks, AlphaTauri was able to climb from last place in the championship to place eight. "I wasn’t able to give the biggest gift to Franz. But at least I gave it all, and I showed at least my performance and for some appreciation to him."