Yuki Tsunoda has voiced concerns over Haas F1’s controversial strategy in Saudi Arabia, marking it as “dishonest” and problematic for the sport.
Tsunoda has claimed that Haas F1’s strategy for scoring points in Saudi Arabia was “dishonest.”
Kevin Magnussen’s race in Jeddah was largely spoiled after he received two 10-second time penalties – the first for making contact with Alexander Albon and the second for overtaking Tsunoda off the track.
After getting ahead of Tsunoda, Magnussen slowed down, backing up the pack behind him, allowing his teammate Nico Hulkenberg to build a gap large enough to ensure he would still be in the points after his pit stop.
Hulkenberg ultimately finished the race in 10th place, scoring Haas F1’s first point since last year’s Singapore Grand Prix.
While his bosses plan to contact the FIA about this (read here), Tsunoda also questioned the ethics of Haas’s race execution, the Japanese driver admitting he made a mistake in letting Magnussen pass.
“It was quite frustrating but my mistake was probably letting Kevin pass. But at the same time, he overtook me with all four wheels off the track. OK, he got a 20-second penalty but he continued to run in front of us and slowed us down,” said the RB F1 driver.
“My view? On one hand, I think Magnussen did a good job for his team. It’s ultimately a team sport. Nico was able to score points so he did a good job but at the same time, it’s quite frustrating.”
“But the way it was done, it was quite dangerous as an overtake and it’s ultimately dishonest.”
Tsunoda adds that he “understands” that Laurent Mekies and Alan Permane will question the FIA about these kinds of strategies, even though he “doubts it will lead to anything.”
Tsunoda Haas Saudi Strategy F1 2024. Tsunoda Haas Saudi Strategy F1 2024.
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