Alpha Tauri have been a perplexing team. While their sister team is dominating Formula 1 like few have, they are languishing at the bottom of the pile. Adding to the woes, Team Principal Franz Tost is leaving the team this season. Yuki Tsunoda has showcased massive improvement and has shone in an otherwise bleak season. Daniel Ricciardo has misplaced a misfiring Nyck de Vries.
Their Season So Far
Alpha Tauri have had the worst car in 2023. However, some experts believe Nyck de Vries made the car look worse than it was. The team has struggled massively on both Saturdays and Sundays, and points finishes have been hard to come by.
Yuki Tsunoda proved Franz Tost’s theory of giving a driver 2 years in Formula 1 right. The Japanese driver filled the void left by his former Alpha Tauri teammate Pierre Gasly. He thoroughly beat Nyck de Vries and has even held his own against Daniel Ricciardo.
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Driver Performances
As stated, Yuki Tsunoda has truly outperformed his car. The Alpha Tauri driver finished 10th or 11th in the first five races of the season while his teammate struggled. A cruel penalty robbed him of another points finish in Spain, which led to a slight drop in performance. He was outqualified and outdriven by a returning Daniel Ricciardo in Hungary. But he bounced back to score a podium in Belgium.
Nyck de Vries had a horror run for Alpha Tauri after a dream debut for Williams last year. The Dutchman was supposed to come in and lead the team, given his experience in other categories. However, Yuki outclassed him. Helmut Marko dropped him after just 10 races.
This led to a surprise return to the grid for Daniel Ricciardo. A good Silverstone test fed into a strong performance in Hungary on his Formula 1 return. He will be looking at this stint as an audition for the Red Bull seat.
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How has the car evolved?
The Alpha Tauri car hasn’t improved massively with the upgrades. However, the drivers have reported better handling as the season has progressed.
Predictions
Finishing last would be quite the disappointment for Alpha Tauri given the performance of Red Bull. However, one wild race result can propel them as high as 7th in the standings. The battle between the teammates will be interesting given they are both auditioning for the seat of Sergio Perez.
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