Ricciardo vs Tsunoda: All 2024 RB Head To Head Stats

Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda are F1 teammates but also rivals in RB (VCARB) in the 2024 Formula One World Championships.

Daniel Ricciardo joined Yuki Tsunoda as a driver who was supposed to bring more experience to the VCARB Formula One team. The head-to-head comparison between these two drivers would be crucial for their futures.

Why? Red Bull boss Helmut Marko (who oversees drivers in VCARB and Red Bull Racing) suggested that either could be promoted to Red Bull Racing in 2025 if they significantly outperform the other driver.

While Yuki Tsunoda secured his contract quite early, Daniel Ricciardo didn't have his future secure. For a long time, he fought not only for potential promotion but also for survival in F1.

We collected all the data and put them into a table that compares the most important stats between the two VCARB drivers. Below, you can also find a detailed breakdown of every race.

Ricciardo vs Tsunoda: All 2024 VCARB H2H Stats:

Daniel Ricciardo with Yuki Tsunoda ahead of the 2024 Italian Grand Prix

2024 Bahrain Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The rivalry in RB got off to a heated start, as the two drivers clashed over the team strategy during the first race of the season at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Tsunoda was ahead of his teammate for the vast majority of the race, but with a few laps left, Ricciardo was catching up because of a different strategy, which saw him complete the last stint on soft tires, compared to the Japanese driver's hards.

At the time when the Australian caught up with his teammate, Tsunoda was within DRS range of Kevin Magnussen, who was ahead of the two, preparing for an overtake on the Danish driver, when he received a radio message to let his teammate through.

Tsunoda didn't agree with the call and voiced his frustration through the radio, and slightly delayed giving his teammate free road, which ultimately didn't allow Ricciardo to overtake Magnussen, as he dropped back by two seconds, as Max Verstappen, who was lapping all of them, slowed down the progress.

Ultimately, Ricciardo finished 13th, one place ahead of Tsunoda, who showed his frustration by driving very close to his teammate during the cool-down lap. After the race, the Honey Badger was asked about the incident and tried to stay very nice to his teammate, calling him "immature."

2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

Tsunoda outperformed Ricciardo for the second time in a row during the season's second race. While Ricciardo was only fast enough for the 14th starting position on the grid, the Japanese driver made it to Q3 and put in the ninth quickest time.

Following his great qualifying performance, the 23-year-old could have fought for points but got stuck behind Kevin Magnussen, who overtook him illegally off-track.

Nevertheless, Tsunoda then made a couple of mistakes and fell even further down the order to finish in the final P15. The Honey Badger struggled from the beginning of the race, even spun out in the final laps, and finished in P16.

2024 Australian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The 2024 Australian Grand Prix was the first race in which RB managed to score points, but unfortunately for fans in Melbourne, it wasn't their home driver who managed to do it.

Once again, Tsunoda seemed to be the stronger driver throughout the weekend, and this time he was rewarded for his efforts also with six championship points for finishing in P7. On the other hand, Ricciardo crossed the finish line 12th, which, at the time, was his best result of the season.

Yuki Tsunoda ahead of Lewis Hamilton during 2024 Australian Grand Prix

2024 Japanese Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The Japanese Grand Prix was a definition of a mixed bag for RB. On the one hand, both drivers qualified really high, right next to each other, 10th and 11th, with the home driver ahead.

However, the Australian had a terrible race start, dropping back by multiple positions, eventually finding himself alongside Alex Albon and crashing out of the race on the opening lap.

On the other hand, Tsunoda showed his undeniable qualities on the home soil, as he was able to score a point by finishing tenth at the Suzuka Circuit.

2024 Chinese Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

During the first Sprint weekend of the season, the 2024 rivalry between the two RB drivers seemingly turned to Ricciardo's favour for the first time during the season.

The Australian was the better driver in the Sprint Shootout (14th vs. 19th), he finished better in the Sprint (11th vs. 16th), and Ricciardo also out-qualified the Japanese driver (12th vs. 19th).

It was after the qualifying that Tsunoda showed his displeasure with the car. After previously seemingly everything was going like he imagined, the Japanese driver stated "something must be wrong" as he thought his performances weren't that bad, given how far behind his teammate he finished.

The race in China was a proper disaster for RB, as both cars were forced to retire within a span of a few minutes. First, Ricciardo was hit behind by Lance Stroll, before Tsunoda was spun by Kevin Magnussen, ending the team's effort in a double retirement.

2024 Miami Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

After an unsuccessful sprint weekend in China, RB hoped for a better result during the second sprint race weekend of the season in Miami, and they got it.

Daniel Ricciardo was finally able to show what he's got. He qualified in P4 for the Sprint race and then defended his position from Carlos Sainz on Ferrari throughout the whole Sprint to bring the P4 home.

Tsunoda finished the Sprint in the last point position - P8. However, the Japanese driver had a much better race than his Australian teammate.

Tsunoda repeated his best results so far, finishing in P7. Although Ricciardo couldn't score points in the race, the RB team could be satisfied with the weekend. All in all, it was the team's most successful weekend of the season up until that point.

Daniel Ricciardo smiling ear to ear after finishing fourth in the Sprint race in Miami

2024 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was the first race weekend of the 2024 season, during which both RB drivers qualified in the top 10.

RB is still based in Italy and competes under the Italian flag, so it was like a home race for the team. Unfortunately, their drivers weren't able to turn the great qualifying result into a double point-finish.

Tsunoda seemed faster than his Australian teammate throughout the majority of the weekend. First, he out-qualified him by two-tenths of a second, and then he beat him in the race by three positions. The Japanese driver finished in P10, while Ricciardo crossed the finish line in P13.

2024 Monaco Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The Monaco Grand Prix is all about qualifying, and Tsunoda confirmed his form when he scored P8. Ricciardo couldn't match his speed and didn't make it out of Q2, where he placed in P13.

Ricciardo gained a position before the start of the race due to Haas's disqualification from Qualifying. Ultimately, both RB drivers finished where they started- in P8 and P12.

Yuki Tsunoda in turn number 15 during the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix

2024 Canadian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

Ricciardo, who was heavily criticized by 1997 Champion Jacques Villeneuve ahead of the weekend in Canada, showed that he still had the speed when he put his VCARB in P5 during the qualifying. Tsunoda also made it into Q3, but his time was "only" good enough for P8.

The Honey Badger's race was slightly compromised by the 5-second penalty he received for a false start, which he later suggested wasn't his fault but rather a problem with a clutch.

Nevertheless, he brought home P8 as there wasn't really a way of keeping Lewis Hamilton with two Aston Martin drivers behind.

Ricciardo scored the only points for RB, but the Italy-based team could have had a double-point finish had it not been for Tsunoda's mistake five laps before the end of the race when he went wide in turn number 8. As a result of his mistake, the 24-year-old driver dropped five positions from P9 into P14.

2024 Spanish Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

RB introduced a significant upgrade package in Spain with hopes of making progress, but the opposite happened, as the Italy-based team lost ground to some of its rivals.

Both drivers were knocked out in Q1. Tsunoda qualified in P17, with Ricciardo right behind in P18. In the race, the Honey Badger improved by three positions to finish P15, whereas Tsunoda lost two to finish in P19.

2024 Austrian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

During the third sprint weekend of the season, the two RB drivers were quite equally matched; the Japanese driver outperformed his teammate in the sprint qualifying and the sprint race- qualified in P14 and finished in P13.

The 34-year-old qualified for the sprint in P16 and finished in P14. While the first part of the weekend wasn't the best for the Honey Badger, he made up for it in the second part. He qualified for the Grand Prix in P11 and finished in P9. The 24-year-old both qualified and finished the race in P14.

Daniel Ricciardo, followed by Yuki Tsunoda and other drivers at the start of the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix

2024 British Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

With rumors about Perez's Red Bull seat being possibly available much sooner than expected because of his not-satisfactory performances, both drivers certainly wanted to show what they were capable of at the Silverstone Circuit.

In qualifying, which was impacted by rain, neither impressed too much. Tsunoda qualified in P13, while his teammate was two places behind him in P15.

During a race, which was impacted by rain even more, both drivers navigated tricky conditions, but it wasn't a dreamy ascension that they have hoped for prior to the race start.

Still, the Japanese driver managed to score one point for RB, finishing 10th, and while Ricciardo improved compared to his starting position, he still finished the race only 13th.

2024 Hungarian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The Australian driver marked the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend as one of the most important in his career, as his future in F1 might depend on his performance there.

He qualified in P9, while Tsunoda qualified in P10. Tsunoda couldn't set a faster lap time as he crashed his RB in the final part of the qualifying session.

The race looked pretty good for the Honey Badger until he stopped for a first change of tires. Right after that, he got stuck in the DRS train of multiple cars without a chance of moving forward. Ultimately, he finished in P12.

Tsunoda chose an alternative one-stop strategy, and he pulled it off to bring home his seventh point-finish of the season, crossing the finish line in P7.

Daniel Ricciardo, followed by Yuki Tsunoda at Hungaroring

2024 Belgian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

Yuki Tsunoda took a grid penalty for a new engine, which meant he knew going into qualifying that he would have to start the race from the back.

After qualifying in P18 and starting from P20, he was only able to climb into P17 (promoted into P16 afterward) during the Grand Prix race. It was a bit better weekend for Daniel Ricciardo.

The Honey Badger qualified in P13 and drove a great to cross the finish line in P11. Though he felt like all his effort was for nothing, Ricciardo ultimately got promoted to P10 after George Russell got disqualified.

2024 Dutch Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The qualifying session didn't go so well for the RB drivers in Zandvoort. However, after qualifying in P12 (Tsunoda) and P15 (Ricciardo), both moved up on the starting grid due to Lewis Hamilton's penalty and Alex Albon's disqualification.

Consequently, Yuki Tsunoda started in P11, and Daniel Ricciardo in P13. Despite starting pretty close to points, neither of the two had enough pace to make it inside the top 10.

The Honey Badger made more out of it and finished in P12, while his Japanese teammate crossed the finish line only in P17.

Daniel Ricciardo in turn number 3 of the Circuit Zandvoort

2024 Italian Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

In Monza, Daniel Ricciardo out-qualified Tsunoda and placed himself in a position to start the Grand Prix from P12. The Japanese driver didn't make it out of Q3, so he had to start from P16.

While there was some hope for the race, the Italian Grand Prix weekend turned out to be one of those where nothing went right for VCARB.

Yuki Tsunoda was taken out by Nico Hulkenberg, who went for a dive bomb but locked up and caused a collision. The 24-year-old didn't finish the race.

Daniel Ricciardo forced Hulkenberg out of the track on the opening lap and received a five-second penalty, which was then incorrectly served because his mechanic touched his front wing too early.

This meant he got an additional 10-second penalty, and there was just no way the Honey Badger would be able to finish inside the top 10 after that. He crossed the line in P13.

2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

Yuki Tsunoda qualified in P12, while Daniel Ricciardo qualified in P16. However, neither of the two F1 drivers started where they qualified.

Tsunoda gained one position for P11 after Lewis Hamilton changed his power unit (which meant he had to start from the pit lane). Ricciardo gained two positions to start from P14 after Pierre Gasly in front of him was disqualified.

The race, however, didn't go too well for either of the VCARB drivers. Tsunoda collided with Lance Stroll on the opening lap and had to retire his car a few laps later.

Ricciardo avoided collisions, but he just didn't have enough pace to compete with other teams in the midfield, like Aston Martin, Williams, and Haas. He would have finished 15th, but after Sainz and Perez crashed in front, he gained two places to finish in P13.

2024 Singapore Grand Prix Summary - Ricciardo vs Tsunoda:

The Singapore Grand Prix was Daniel Ricciardo's final race in Formula 1. He was knocked out of Q1 in qualifying, started the Grand Prix from P16, and finished in P18.

The Honey Badger pitted to change for soft compound tires in the end and scored the fastest lap of the Grand Prix on his final lap in F1. Tsunoda qualified in P8 but didn't have the pace in the Grand Prix to match the cars around and fell to P12.