Helmut Marko gives final verdict on Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull seat security

Red Bull Racing has become the biggest talk of the paddock in the past week. Milton Keynes have demoted Liam Lawson just two races into the 2025 season in favor of Yuki Tsunoda. Questions have risen whether Tsunoda would face a similar risk of losing his seat if he fails to perform in the coming races. Now, Red Bull Motorsport Consultant Dr. Helmut Marko has responded to such speculation.

Yuki Tsunoda will be partnering Max Verstappen from his home race at Suzuka next weekend. This will be the ideal chance for the 24-year-old to prove himself to the Austrian giant. However, it remains a massive gamble that could potentially end his career if he fails to match expectations. Though, Marko insisted that such a brutal change was unlikely to happen.

The 81-year-old was asked if Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar could be promoted to Red Bull in case Yuki Tsunoda fails to perform. Helmut Marko made it clear that the team was not considering this possibility. Rather, the Japanese driver will get to complete the entire season at Milton Keynes, alongside reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

This decision might be surprising for many considering Red Bull’s instant reaction towards Lawson’s performances. Though, one must wait to see how Yuki Tsunoda actually holds up against star driver Max Verstappen next weekend at the Japanese GP.

Red Bull needed to stop ‘downward spiral’ of Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson had high expectations to fulfill at Red Bull against Max Verstappen this season. Many hoped that the Kiwi driver will end the ‘curse’ of the second seat at Milton Keynes, and finally be on par with the reigning world champion, something even Sergio Perez failed to do.

Unfortunately, things did not go in Lawson’s favor. In the first two rounds, Liam Lawson failed to even make it out of Q1 in Qualifying. The Kiwi driver even crashed out on his Red Bull debut in Australia. This ended patience within Milton Keynes who are in no position to lose crucial points in the championship.

Helmut Marko pointed out that Red Bull was not seeing any signs of improvement from Lawson’s data across the two weekends. He reckoned that the Kiwi driver was in a downward spiral which needed to be ended immediately for Milton Keynes.

On the other hand, Marko insisted that Yuki Tsunoda has shown positive signs of improvement. He claimed that the Japanese driver went through a rapid transformation in performance and was now the best driver to partner Verstappen at Red Bull Racing.

Is Yuki Tsunoda the right fit for Red Bull?

Yuki Tsunoda made his F1 debut in 2021 at AlphaTauri (now Racing Bulls). The Japanese driver impressed the grid with his performances early on in the year. Though, things took a turn after his radio outbursts became a cause of concern for Red Bull. Though, in the past two seasons, he has changed as a driver.

Tsunoda not only ended any hopes for ex-Formula E champion Nyck de Vries in 2023, but even managed to match Daniel Ricciardo. Yuki Tsunoda’s consistency last year led to Red Bull sacking Ricciardo from RB even before the end of last year in favor of Liam Lawson.

Red Bull Racing is a completely different environment. No driver has come close to Max Verstappen in terms of pure pace since 2019. As such, Yuki Tsunoda faces a massive task against the Dutch driver, but he remains unfazed. The Japanese driver will undoubtedly push himself to the limit from the moment he gets inside the RB21 in Suzuka. However, it remains to be seen if things can go right for Tsunoda in the coming weeks.

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