What Is the Future of a 25-Year-Old Red Bull Driver’s F1 Career?
The 2025 season hasn’t been kind to Red Bull Racing’s second seat driver, Yuki Tsunoda. It’s especially difficult to drive the second seat when his teammate is Formula 1 legend and four-time world champion Max Verstappen. Since joining Red Bull Racing after a short career in Red Bull’s F1 junior team, Racing Bulls, Tsunoda has struggled to get any points while his teammate has been winning Grands Prix, including back-to-back victories at Monza and Baku. There’s a lot to be said about the quality of the car that Red Bull is using, but that doesn’t change the fact that Tsunoda has underperformed all season. With his contract renewal up in the air, there’s a good chance that Yuki Tsunoda does not see the F1 grid again next year.
Red Bull’s car has not been easy to drive for the past two years, and as such, many names have unsuccessfully rotated through the second seat position. After Sergio “Checo” Perez was let go by the team following the 2024 season, Liam Lawson was only brought on for the first two races of 2025 before being replaced by Tsunoda. All three drivers have been unable to perform optimally in the Red Bull car, with the best recent performance coming from Checo. Tsunoda and Lawson were teammates in 2024 on Racing Bulls and were comparable in terms of overall driver skill. Since joining Red Bull Racing, Tsunoda has notably underperformed compared to Lawson, who remains with Racing Bulls. Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar has even managed to achieve a podium this season, compared to Tsunoda, who is still fighting for points.
Baku saw the best performance of the season from Tsunoda, with a P6 in Qualifying and a P6 finish in the main race. For a team at the front of the grid, a P6 finish as a season best for one of their drivers is unacceptable, and should Tsunoda continue to fall so far behind, it would be hard to imagine him being signed for any additional time with Red Bull Racing. While returning to the junior team might be an option, Racing Bulls will probably be looking to acquire new rookies as they promote Hadjar to Red Bull Racing after his spectacular rookie year. Hadjar’s promotion is unconfirmed as of yet, but it seems probable.
The main problem that Tsunoda faces is that there is little room on the current grid for a driver of his caliber. While he is far from the worst driver, he isn’t cut out for the top teams, who all have a mix of young and capable or veteran drivers. Teams typically occupying the back of the grid, such as Alpine or Haas, appear satisfied with their drivers and are focusing on backend issues. Tsunoda has recently made mention of a breakthrough in terms of his skill, but with the Red Bull Racing car unlikely to be optimal for the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix, it’s doubtful that he will make any meaningful progress in the remaining season. If he is correct about this breakthrough, and if he remains in the points for several races, he would have a stronger chance at staying on the grid.
