Yuki Tsunoda said it was not easy for him last season either when asked if he felt any sympathy for Liam Lawson having taken his Red Bull seat. Red Bull swapped Tsunoda and Lawson for Japan onwards, having initially looked like they were passing over the long-time Racing Bulls driver,

Liam Lawson leaves Suzuka and the Japanese Grand Prix with a bitter taste after Yuki Tsunoda Debuts With a solid but unspectacular finish.

There is only so much you can extrapolate from one-and-a-bit practice sessions on a day when the only thing really catching fire was the grass around the Suzuka circuit. But it is fair to say that Yuki Tsunoda’s first day in a Red Bull was a qualified success.