Defiant Yuki Tsunoda sends message in 'frustrating' admission

Yuki Tsunoda is adamant he will be able to turn around his wayward qualifying form at the British Grand Prix, even though his inability to unlock better long run pace continues to be "frustrating" for him. The Japanese driver has only scored seven points since taking over the second Red Bull seat from Liam Lawson nine rounds ago. Currently on his worst stretch of the campaign, the 25-year-old has not scored in four rounds, since the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. He has not reached the final stage of qualifying since the Miami Grand Prix, two months ago. It was another disastrous event last time out at the Austrian Grand Prix. Having qualified a lowly P18, it was a messy afternoon for Tsunoda at Red Bull's home race, picking up a 10-second time penalty en route to P16. That was last of the remaining runners and two laps down on race winner Lando Norris. Nonetheless, he feels he can bounce back after a "tough" trip to the Red Bull Ring. "Austria was a tough weekend for us, and I really had high hopes going into it," Tsunoda said ahead of the weekend at Silverstone. "Unfortunately, things didn't turn out the way we wanted, and we have to accept that and move on. "I am feeling more and more confident in the car, which is why not being able to unlock the long run pace is frustrating for me. "The team and I are working together to find a way to do that and to gain consistency across a weekend." Tsunoda, like Lawson and Perez before him, is struggling to adapt to the extreme nature of the Red Bull car, which is built in the image of Max Verstappen. Unlikely to stay with the team once his contract expires at the end of the season, he is currently one of a few drivers on Cadillac's shortlist. But despite his precarious situation, Tsunoda is committed to continuing to improve and showing what he is "capable of." "The positive is I have shown and have felt that we have the potential to qualify well, it's now about making sure set-up is right and I can lock a good lap in, like in Canada before the grid penalty," he said. "I want to get this week right for everyone and show what I am capable of."