1997 Formula 1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve has branded the “worst” Max Burstappen’s F1 teammate to date.
Tsunoda has struggled since being promoted to the Japanese Grand Prix along with Verstappen.
The 25-year-old has scored just three points since joining Red Bull.
The best finish for the Zonodah at the RB21 was in Bahrain in 9th place.
Tsunoda’s F1 Future looks uncertain beyond this season, but has shown a flash of improvement in recent races.
Speaking to Vision4Sport, Villeneuve was critical of Tsunoda.
“The horned spurts are probably the worst so far,” he said. “Many people say it’s unfair that the car is made for Max, but Max may actually be the only person who gives good feedback to the team.
“They aren’t trying to make that difficult for the No. 2 driver. The problem is, there aren’t many like Max. In the past, there were multiple on his level, and you had some good drivers.
“Now, there are a lot of good drivers, not just a few. You don’t have an exceptional driver anymore. So Max really stands out. So it’s hard to put someone next to him.
“That’s the fact that until you get someone like Max, ‘Okay, maybe they’re not all enough!” So, is it the fact that all the drivers that have been paired with Max so far are all average drivers? ”
The horned single simply “not enough”
Yuki Tsunoda
Villeneuve believes it’s time to put a known amount along with Verstappen.
Some of his predecessors, like Zonodah and Liam Lawson, weren’t close to Verstappen’s level.
Villeneuve hopes to see Charles Leclair or Fernando Alonso along with Verstappen in the future.
“It’s good to see Leclerc next to Max and see how good he is. Or, it’s a known amount, so it’s good to have Alonso next to Max now,” he explained. “It’s good to have Norris next to Max, so will they really see if Norris is exceptional or if he’s very good?
“It helps to quantify things. Max knows that it’s exceptional, but the driver next to him isn’t enough and there’s no point in saying ‘Oh, poor’. No, they’re not all.
“And that’s what happened in the tsunami. He’s already had four or five years of experience. He’s done his best. That’s not enough. So he was given this opportunity and it got too bad.
“He got in and he didn’t cut it. It’s so simple and you wouldn’t feel bad for him. He was given the opportunity to join the top team and he didn’t cut it.