F1: Helmut Marko Believes Yuki Tsunoda Is Better Than Verstappen

Tsunoda graduated to F1 from Red Bull's F2 team where he impressed and was partnered with Jehan Daruvala from India, in his rookie year in F2.

By Sahil Gupta

1 mins read

Published on March 26, 2021

Highlights

Tsunoda has impressed Marko a lot
Marko believes he was able to things that Verstappen couldn't
He is tipped to be one of the future stars for Red Bull

Red Bull's Helmut Marko is so impressed by AlphaTauri rookie Yuki Tsunoda that he believes that the Japanese youngster was so impressive that he could do things that Max Verstappen couldn't do. Verstappen of course is considered to be one of the best drivers in the world and is tipped to be second only to defending world champion Lewis Hamilton. Considering Verstappen's age many believe that his abilities surpass those of even Hamilton when he started in 2007. The Honda engine looks really promising and so does the young duo of Pierre Gasly and Yuko Tsunoda at AlphaTauri During the pre-season testing the AlphaTauri car seemed to be one of the quickest on the field and particularly Tsunoda who showed off some tricks with DRS impressed everyone. ''We gave him five sets of tyres and with each fresh tyre, he was faster than the last. That was five optimal qualifying laps. Even Verstappen couldn't do that. The way Tsunoda goes over the track promises a lot for the future," Marko told Kronen Zeitung. ''He is an exceptional boy. He also has a great sense of humour for a Japanese,'' added the Austrian. Tsunoda graduated to F1 from Red Bull's F2 team where he impressed and was partnered with Jehan Daruvala from India. In his rookie year in F2. Tsunoda managed 3 wins and 4 poles which trigged his graduation to the AlphaTauri team. He is not the only rookie in F1 this year as F2 world champion Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin make their debuts in F1 with the Haas team.