Will Yuki Tsunoda ever drive for Red Bull? 'It's not really clear'
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Yuki Tsunoda believes that he's ready to step up to Red Bull Racing after spending several years with their sister team, VCARB. The Japanese driver would be certain of a seat at VCARB for next year but would be hoping to graduate to Red Bull Racing instead of spending a fifth season on the junior team. In Abu Dhabi, Tsunoda says that he has also grown on an emotional level, an element which Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has previously criticised.
"I'm sure I've stepped up in those areas. If they said that last year, it makes sense, but this year, I've been stepped up quite a lot, I think. There's not many occasions that I went completely out of control, to be honest," Tsunoda said. Last year, Tsunoda would still sometimes lash out over the radio if something didn't go his way. That may still happen every now and then, as Formula 1 drivers are operating on pure adrenaline in the cockpit, after all. The extremities we've seen in previous years are long gone, he believes.
It may have previously been a valid argument to not put him in the Red Bull seat. Now, Tsunoda believes that he is ready. "I don't think so, to be honest. If they said that, it’s not true for me, at least. I saw multiple drivers getting out of control. They don't get picked up much. I don't really feel that I was out of control in a lot of races, so I think it's okay."
Tsunoda is still 'happy' to continue with Red Bull:
Is patience thinning for Tsunoda? 2025 may be his last season with the Red Bull family should promotion fail to materialise. "Depends on what they want," he says. "At the same time, I don't think there are so many free teams. I like Red Bull, and I'm happy to continue with them, but it depends on what they think. It always depends on what they think, so I don't know," he explained.
There's no doubt that Tsunoda has performed well this season. He's beaten both Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson overall and has racked up 30 points in total for VCARB.
Tsunoda 'can't rely' on VCARB:
Despite his good results and the pressure under Sergio Perez, Tsunoda's 2026 plans are currently unknown. "To be honest, it's not really clear. I could be at VCARB in 2026 as well, to be honest. I didn't get told anything that it’ll be the last race next year. I think they changed the approach a little bit. I’m not really clear what they want. As a driver, to be honest, I can't just keep relying on them," Tsunoda said honestly in conversation with GPblog and others.
"A lot of talk going on. It's always good to have something as an option, but so far, I'm not necessarily trying to find that, to be honest, because the current situation is not really bad. Depends what car I drive next year and how the season will go for next year." He concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Corwin Kunst.