Tsunoda and Lindblad left to reflect on what could have been after missing out on points

Credit: Luca Martini / WHYOUT images

Yuki Tsunoda was left ruing a near miss on his return to the Formula One grid, finishing 11th at the Dutch Grand Prix having stepped in for Liam Lawson, who was promoted to Red Bull for the weekend after Isack Hadjar picked up a wrist injury over the summer break. It marked Tsunoda's first race back since losing his seat at the end of last season, and having never turned a wheel in the 2026-spec car before Friday practice, the Japanese driver was satisfied with a performance that came agonisingly close to the points.

"Yeah, I mean, I did as much as I can and I definitely enjoyed, I don't know, enjoyed the race today. Obviously, it was a shame that I'm missing the points very closely, but yeah, overall was pretty fun," he said. He was quick to credit the team for helping him find his feet so rapidly in unfamiliar machinery. "I had a lot of work taken, that's what I, you know, miss a lot and yeah, thanks to the team to help me to get up to speed like this fast, without with the unforgettable memories in 2026 and so on."

Asked whether the weekend had strengthened his hopes of a seat on the 2027 grid, Tsunoda was measured rather than triumphant, preferring to let the performance speak for itself. "Well, I hope. I think I did as much as I did things as much as I can, honestly, you know, with one race to jump into this car, with knowing anything so. Not only so much better if I score points, but you know, being able to fight against them, a strong midfield and I think, you know, being close to the points, I take it," he said.

Teammate Arvid Lindblad endured an even more frustrating afternoon, with a strong pace undone by a drive-through penalty for overtaking Pierre Gasly under yellow flags in the immediate aftermath of Max Verstappen's opening-lap crash. Lindblad explained that he had been reacting to a chaotic scene at the corner rather than knowingly breaking the rules.

"Yeah, I mean the end, Max lost it, then he came across the track and there was debris everywhere, I couldn't really see anything. I just tried to avoid making contact with the tyre and then I was just holding my line, and trying to just go straight, you know, not have any incidents or anything, and then I passed Pierre in turn one, but I didn't see any flags or anything, so I think it was a bit of a shame," he said.

The rookie made little secret of his frustration with the severity of the sanction. "I also think the penalty is, it's a bit harsh, I think we can all be honest, it took me out the race basically, it was quite extreme for such an incident, but fine, it is what it is."

Despite the setback, Lindblad insisted the pace he showed for the remainder of the race, on what he called one of his strongest weekends in Formula One to date, was reason for optimism heading into Monza. "It's just a shame because I think the pace was really good, the race honestly from after that onwards, I'm actually quite proud of, I think it's probably one of my best races in Formula One from a pace point of view. I think my commitment in the overtakes, I tried to help the team where I could, which was, yeah, quite something," he said.

He was adamant that a stronger result had been within reach before the penalty intervened. "We're taking out the race on lap three, so yeah, it is, I appreciate it's probably a bit early to want to focus on more of the positives.

"The starting weekend we want as competitive as we have been, but you know, with myself getting more speed with the track, with the team, you know, making some changes, I think we really did have a very competitive car, and this proper part of the weekend, you know, the normal format, not the sprint parts, it's just a shame that we weren't able to take any points, because I have absolutely zero doubt that without the penalty, we would have been P8 today."