Yuki Tsunoda is celebrating his 23rd birthday today, here are a few important details about the only Japanese driver on the F1 grid

Since the beginning of the season, Yuki Tsunoda has shown a certain level of consistency and consistently flirts with the top 10. But life hasn’t always been easy for the driver, and for the past 2 and a half years, he has been gaining experience and improving his driving skills. Between 2021 and 2022, he is alongside Pierre Gasly who is a role model for him, and the two drivers maintain a close friendship off the track.

To pay tribute to the 23 candles blown by Yuki Tsunoda on his birthday, we look back at the things to know about the Japanese driver.

The number 22

Several reasons explain this choice, firstly during his karting career, he wore the number 11, however, there was already a Mexican driver with this number. So he chose to double it, as a tribute to… Jenson Button who became world champion in 2009 with the number 22 on his Brown BGP 001.

The young Japanese driver also explains that he chose the number 22 as a tribute to his compatriot Takuma Sato, who himself had this number for several seasons.

He started late compared to the other drivers.

While most drivers start karting at a young age, Tsunoda, on the other hand, started at the age of 10. He began in the JAF Junior Karting Championship in 2010 before gradually moving up through regional and national categories. Not initially passionate about racing, it wasn’t until his transition to single-seaters in 2016 that it became a passion for him.

Passage in the Japanese Formula 4

As stated earlier, in 2016 Yuki Tsunoda made his debut in a single-seater in the Japanese F4. He joined Sutekina Racing Team for the last two races of the season, where he achieved a second and a fourth place as results.

The following year, he continued his adventure in the Japanese F4, but this time with the Formula Dream Project team. Throughout the year 2017, he won 3 races and achieved 6 podium finishes. He ended his season in 3rd place in the championship before winning the title the following year with 7 victories and 11 podium finishes in 14 races.

The protege of the Honda engine manufacturer.

Yuki Tsunoda is considered to be a protege of Honda due to his close relationship with the Japanese automotive manufacturer. Honda was involved in Formula 1 as an engine supplier when he entered F1, and Tsunoda has benefited from Honda’s support throughout his racing career.

In 2018, Tsunoda joined Honda’s Young Driver Development Program, which aims to identify and support promising talents in motorsport. Honda was impressed by Tsunoda’s performances in the junior formula categories.

Thanks to Honda’s support, Tsunoda continued to climb the ranks of the motorsport world. He participated in the Formula Regional European Championship in 2019, where he achieved good results. Afterwards, he made the leap to Formula 2, where he also experienced victories, finishing 3rd in 2020, just 15 points behind the champion, Mick Schumacher.

Due to his strong performance and potential, Honda decided to promote him to Formula 1 in 2021. Tsunoda became a driver for the AlphaTauri team, which is supported by Honda. This opportunity was a significant milestone for Tsunoda, as he became the first Japanese driver to compete in Formula 1 since 2014.

Yuki Tsunoda’s dream

For now at AlphaTauri, Yuki aspires to become a world champion one day, and he also dreams of opening a restaurant. Paradoxically, he doesn’t want to be the chef in the kitchen but more like a supervisor. As for the cuisine of the restaurant, he hesitates between Japanese or Italian food.