RB, rags fly: Tsunoda inches from Ricciardo after Bahrain

by VALERIO BARRETTA

Ricciardo and Tsunoda, what post-race sparks

Evidently it is destined that RB should only be talked about for aspects external to the track. The VCARB 01 that he discussed in the pre-season due to its similarity to last year's Red Bull it only impressed in the FP1 in Bahrain, then returning to mediocrity in qualifying and the race. And, as soon as the checkered flag of the Sakhir GP passed, the team that divides its time between Faenza and Bicester caused discussion again. And the credit, this time, goes to the pilots. Or rather, a pilot.

Tsunoda's maneuver

Let's start with the facts: Yuki Tsunodaafter the end of the Bahrain race, he threw himself into Turn 8 inside Daniel Ricciardo, then blocking the tires in front of him and coming alongside him a few meters ahead. Only by a matter of centimeters did the two avoid a contact that would have been tragicomic.

Ricciardo's reaction

Immediately after his teammate's maneuver, Ricciardo opened up on the radio with a laconic: “What the fuck? Save it“. Having removed his helmet, the Australian scolded his partner: “I'm very sensitive right now, but let's call it immaturity. Yuki is obviously frustrated with the team order, but let's be realistic: it's something we talked about before the race. It was very likely that I would have used the soft tires at the end of the GP. He therefore knew that there was a possibility that I had a pace advantage at the end. He didn't give me any points, we were fighting for 13th place, but at least we had the best chance of having at least one car in the points“.

The background

On the 52nd of the 57 laps, in an attempt to overtake Kevin Magnussen (12th), the team – under Ricciardo's input – ordered the Japanese to let theHoney Badger, which unlike him had soft tyres. The class of 2000 – who certainly will not go down in history for his aplomb – commented ironically: “Thanks guys, I really appreciate it“. Once Ricciardo didn't give him back the position, he took “revenge” on the track. Not even in interviews did the Japanese manage to cool off his anger: “I was about to overtake Magnussen, I was wheel to wheel on the straight. To be honest, I didn't understand what the team was thinking“.