Alpha Tauri hopes to compete successfully with F1 midfield teams.
SALZBURG, Austria—The second Formula 1 team this season to launch their 2021 challenger, Red Bull’s junior team, Alpha Tauri, premiered their new car, the AT02. The unveiling came early Friday morning online from their showroom in Salzburg, Austria.
The entry has changed their mostly white car to a navy-blue color and has replaced Dani Kvyat with Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda. Frenchman Pierre Gasly, who triumphed in his first Grand Prix last season in Italy, retains in the other seat.
“With the changes to the aero regulations targeting a reduction in downforce, we have been presented with several changes we have got to make to the floor, the diffuser, and rear brake ducts, and this has required a lot of work to reoptimize around these changes,” said Technical Director Jody Egginton. “The work which has been undertaken to develop our car for 2021 goes far beyond compliance with regulation changes and has involved changes to nearly all aero surfaces and also the development and repackaging large parts of the car,”
Last year, the team finished seventh in the Constructor’s Championship, but team principal Franz Tost thinks, barring major errors, the team can compete with most of the midfield teams. “In 2020, Scuderia AlphaTauri was fighting successfully against the other teams like McLaren, Renault, and Racing Point, but our target for this year is to be at the top of this midfield pack consistently and to improve further,” Eggintyon asserted.
Yuki Tsunoda (photo, Red Bull)
On the drive side, it is a great opportunity for Tsunoda to become the first driver from his country to compete in F1 since the current Indianapolis winner, Takuma Sato, did it years ago. “I’ve been lucky enough to spend some time with Scuderia AlphaTauri ahead of the season, so I’m already developing strong relationships and learning a lot from them–including Pierre (Gasly), who is an incredible talent. My main goal is to learn quickly and deliver results as soon as possible, and I’m really excited to get started.” Tsunoda said.
Gasly, who won in Italy, is contracted to Red Bull for the current period, stopping any chance of leaving. He’s committed to the team, too. “I really believe last year was the team’s best in terms of the way it worked, the development, the performance, and the way it managed the race weekends. I’m always hungry for more, and I’m sure we can achieve great things in 2021.”
