After the Bahrain tests, Racing Bulls arrived at the first race of the season in Australia with some doubts about the car’s potential, especially because the performance in Sakhir had not been entirely convincing. However, Australia immediately provided positive signs, as the team comfortably reached Q3 in qualifying.
A top 10 position in qualifying could have translated into an excellent race result, potentially even fourth place, if not for a strategic error that unfortunately cost the team more than it had hoped. However, in changing conditions, a tactical mistake can be expected, especially when other teams also reached or were approaching the same conclusion.
The problem is that something else went wrong in China, preventing the team from fully capitalizing on the potential of a VCARB02 that continues to perform well. The mere three points earned in the Chinese sprint race certainly do not reflect what the Faenza team has demonstrated so far, having emerged as a midfield leader in the first two races of the season.
In Shanghai, both Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda once again performed brilliantly, securing top-10 finishes in qualifying. The French driver even claimed an impressive seventh place, finishing ahead of Andrea Kimi Antonelli and putting himself in a strong position to score his first points of the season. The VCARB02 remains very effective in slow sections and has generally impressed with how comfortable the drivers feel with its balance in the opening races.
During the first stint, both drivers remained in the top 10, with Tsunoda overtaking his teammate to move up to eighth place. However, the first round of pit stops quickly changed the situation: the Faenza team was the first to pit Tsunoda, not only to attempt an undercut on Hadjar but also to defend against those behind them.
Alongside the Japanese driver, Esteban Ocon also pitted, aiming to capitalize on the graining of the medium tires, which could make the undercut an effective strategy to gain positions in the pit lane. Indeed, during the first pit stop cycle, Yuki Tsunoda managed to pass Kimi Antonelli, while Hadjar, who had to wait an extra lap, was overtaken by Ocon.
After the first round of pit stops, Yuki Tsunoda found himself leading the midfield pack, ahead of the Haas driver and Antonelli, while Hadjar dropped back but remained in contention for a top-10 finish. Despite expectations of a two-stop race, very few teams actually followed that strategy—including Racing Bulls.
The issue was that, in the meantime, the race shifted toward a one-stop strategy due to the effectiveness of the hard tires, which suffered less from graining and could last until the finish without issues. This effectively eliminated Yuki Tsunoda from the battle for points, as he fell back to 15th place.
Although the top 10 was not too far ahead—just 7 or 8 seconds—it was practically impossible to recover, not only because the hard tires were not degrading significantly but also because the Japanese driver would have needed to overtake at least five cars.
Further complicating matters was the failure of Yuki Tsunoda’s front wing, which crushed any remaining hopes of a strong result—though by that point, the chances were already slim. This was also evident with Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton, who tried to chase down Max Verstappen after the second stop but could not maintain the necessary lap times. In contrast, Verstappen secured fourth place thanks to the hard tire improving over the final 20 laps.
“Our pace was good. It probably wasn’t as strong as in the sprint, so we need to analyze that, but I’m also sure we didn’t optimize the strategy. The main takeaway is that we can avoid these situations and figure out how to create a more precise strategy for the future,” Yuki Tsunoda explained after the race, highlighting that the team might be relying too much on the car’s strong performance.
“We know the car has good pace. But I think we may have relied on that too much and missed something really important before this race. Haas did a great job, to be honest. Until now, they were struggling a lot, and suddenly, they improved their pace from this race onward.”
“They deserve credit, but at the same time, we know we can do better. We have the tools, the people—who are much better than them—and a car that is much better than theirs. Losing crucial points in two consecutive races is something we absolutely need to address.”
Isack Hadjar, on the other hand, stated that he did not question the strategy due to his limited experience in F1: “It’s only my second race, after all. It’s my first full race in F1, so I’m not going to start making up strategies. If we decide on a plan, we stick to it—simple as that.”
Team Principal Laurent Mekies echoed the sentiment, emphasizing that this was the second consecutive race in which the team failed to capitalize on a car that deserved a better outcome.
“This is the second consecutive race where we didn’t score the points we thought we could, based on the car’s speed and the drivers’ performances this weekend. So, we definitely have a lot of work ahead to improve in these areas and ensure we come back stronger in the future. That said, there are still many positives to take from this weekend—the pace was exceptional,” said Laurent Mekies.
“We have a fast car, fast drivers, and we fought with the top teams for most of the weekend. After this double-header, we’ll regroup in Faenza and Milton Keynes, assess our race execution, and come back stronger for the next race in Japan.”
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