F1 Racer Yuki Tsunoda in ‘Best Situation Ever' Ahead of Red Bull Debut at Japanese Grand Prix

Yahoo

03-04-2025

Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson have switched rides, as Red Bull Racing hopes to keep its F1 Constructors' Championship hopes alive.
Tsunoda comes to this week's F1 Japanese Grand Prix having not yet driven Red Bull's RB21.
Tsunoda says that Red Bull has asked him to 'be as close to Max [Verstappen] as possible."
Banners, flags and posters of Yuki Tsunoda have undergone revisions in recent days at Suzuka, home of this week's Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix, with Racing Bulls imagery swapped out for shots of the home favorite in Red Bull Racing gear.
Tsunoda is center of attention in Japan and his fourth home Grand Prix will coincide with his Red Bull Racing debut, following last week's decision by the outfit to swap him with the underperforming Liam Lawson after just two events.
While Lawson prepares to rebuild at the junior team, it is the opportunity towards which Tsunoda has been working for several years, and which at times looked set to remain elusive.
'Yeah, really looking forward to it,' Tsunoda said. 'It can't be crazier than this, I guess, this situation. First race in the Red Bull Racing, but also on top of it in home Grand Prix. I think best situation ever in terms of anything but I'm just excited.'
Tsunoda has not yet driven Red Bull's RB21—that will come during Friday's two practice sessions—but he was encouraged by his virtual running in the team's simulator last week.
'Obviously I'm sure it's not fully, fully correlated in terms of like, the trickiness of the car,' Tsunoda said. 'But at least it didn't feel like crazy, crazy tricky. But I can, at the same time, feel what the drivers was mentioning about the instability. I tried different setups. I did multiple setups that I want to try and to make it a little bit better. And actually, those two days was pretty productive.
'And at least I know now what kind of direction I want to start. And it seems to be also a good baseline for an overall performance as well.'
Tsunoda outlined that Red Bull has requested him to 'be as close to Max [Verstappen] as possible' and that the fortunes of his predecessors have not agitated his mindset.
'I mean, pressure has always come, I guess, once you hit the track,' Tsunoda said. 'For now, I'm really relaxing somehow. It feels actually similar to when I was in Racing Bulls. I don't really, so far, feel pressure or anything. I think those things will naturally come. Anyway, it's my home Grand Prix. I'm sure it's going to be hectic, but there's not much point to feel pressure.'
Reigning F1 World Champion Max Verstappen, who trails McLaren's Lando Norris by eight points, was reluctant to speak much on the driver swap.
'My reaction was shared with the team, in general, about not only the swap but about everything, we discussed it,' Verstappen said. 'Everything has been shared, how I think about everything, sometimes it's not necessary to share everything in public, I think it's better.
'Our main issue is that our car is not where we want it to be, everyone knows that, and that's where I focus on, as soon as the car is more competitive and driveable in general, then in the second car it will come to you anyway a bit more naturally.'