F1
Yuki Tsunoda is stepping up to take on the toughest job in motorsport: being Max Verstappen’s team-mate. So how will the hugely popular Japanese driver rise to the challenge?
Following a difficult start to the 2025 Formula One World Championship for Liam Lawson, Oracle Red Bull Racing have swapped drivers, promoting Yuki Tsunoda from Visa Cash App Racing Bulls to drive for them from the Japanese Grand Prix and onwards.
Red Bull are in the unique position of having four seats on the Formula One grid across Oracle Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App Racing Bulls therefore the team have made the decision to exercise a driver rotation that will see Tsunoda partner current and four-time World Champion Max Verstappen.
After New Zealander Lawson struggled to get to grips with the new RB21 in the opening two rounds of the 2025 season, Team Principal Christian Horner explained that having both drivers scoring points for Red Bull Racing is the top priority. “It’s been difficult to see Liam struggle with the RB21 at the first two races and, as a result, we have collectively taken the decision to make an early switch,” said Horner. “We came into the 2025 season with two ambitions, to retain the World Drivers' Championship and to reclaim the World Constructors' title and this is a purely sporting decision.”
The Red Bull Racing boss added that the Tsunoda will play a key role in taming the new car: “Yuki's experience will prove highly beneficial in helping to develop the current car. We welcome him to the team and are looking forward to seeing him behind the wheel of the RB21.”
01
Yuki Tsunoda's path to Red Bull Racing
Tsunoda has matured in his four full seasons with the Faenza-based squad having impressed in the feeder series. Yuki stared karting when he was nine and did enough to impress Honda who signed him to the Honda Formula Dream Project. He won back-to-back championships in F4 before leaving Japan for F3 and F2 with the Red Bull Junior Team. In 2020, he scored three wins and seven podiums to finish second in the F2 Championship, securing his move up to F1. In 2021, he made his debut with the then Scuderia AlphaTauri, finishing in a career-best fourth place at that season’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Tsunoda now arrives at Red Bull Racing on an impressive run of form having qualified fifth for the Australian Grand Prix and taken sixth place in the Sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix.
Making your debut at your home race adds another exciting dimension, but the fans will be rooting for Yuki as he becomes the first-ever Japanese driver to race with a front-running team. The spotlight will be on him from the start, which begins with a show run in front of his home fans.
"We're incredibly proud of Yuki earning his well-deserved move to Oracle Red Bull Racing! His progress last year, and more recently from the very start of 2025, has been nothing less than sensational," said Laurent Mekies, Team Principal of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls. “Personally, and collectively, it has been an immense privilege to witness those progresses for all of us in Faenza and in Milton Keynes. Yuki's energy and positivity have lightened up every corner of our factories and of our garage and he will always be a Racing Bull! We wish him all the success he deserves at ORBR.”
02
A return to Faenza
Meanwhile Liam Lawson – who is only starting in his first full season in F1 – returns to Faenza to partner with another talented new team-mate in the rookie Isack Hadjar.
Despite a difficult start to 2025, Lawson’s credentials are impressive. Having made his debut deputising for Daniel Ricciardo before replacing the Australian toward the end of last season. He also proved his raw pace in a one-off test for Red Bull Racing at Silverstone last year, convincing the team to promote his to replace Sergio Pérez. But with only 11 race starts under his belt, Liam is the least experienced driver to land a seat with the Milton Keynes squad since Robert Doornbos in 2006. The New Zealander returns to Racing Bulls to work with Laurent Mekies and the team.
Horner added: “We have a duty of care to protect and develop Liam and together, we see that after such a difficult start, it makes sense to act quickly so Liam can gain experience, as he continues his F1 career with Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, an environment and a team he knows very well.”
Mekies continued: “Everyone here at VCARB is looking forward to working hard with Liam to give him the best environment possible for him to shine in our car and to express the talent we all know he has. He fit in so well last year, and we cannot wait to challenge ourselves and grow as a team. With Isack having started strongly with us already, we know we have a young and strong line-up.”
03
Max Verstappen’s team-mates
In head-to-head qualifying and race stats, Yuki Tsunoda has bested Nyck De Vries, Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson – in fact Pierre Gasly is the only team-mate to beat the Japanese speedster. But let’s look at how four-time F1 World Champion Max compares with his former team-mates…
04
Carlos Sainz
- Team: Scuderia Toro Rosso
- Grands Prix: 56 (23 teamed with Max)
- Best Grid Position: 5 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 4 (x1)
- Points scored: 112
The rivalry between Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen was always fierce. When they made their F1 debuts for Scuderia Toro Rosso at the 2015 Australian Grand Prix, it was sharpened by the fact that both men knew they were competing for a seat with Red Bull Racing. Meanwhile, the occupant of that seat, Daniil Kvyat, knew he had to deliver to retain his place in the garage opposite Ricciardo. All four had arrived in F1 via the Red Bull Junior Team and knew each other well. In 2015, the two brought a record haul of points back to Faenza, with 49 coming from Verstappen – with two eye-catching fourth places – and 18 from Sainz. After a difficult home race for Kvyat at the 2016 Russian Grand Prix, Verstappen was promoted to Red Bull Racing for the Spanish Grand Prix, where he took his first F1 victory. Ricciardo had a new team-mate…
05
Daniel Ricciardo
- Team: Scuderia Toro Rosso
- Grands Prix: 39
- Best Grid Position: 5 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 7 (x2)
- Points scored: 30
- Team: Red Bull Racing
- Grands Prix: 100 (58 teamed with Max)
- Best Grid Position: 1 (x3)
- Highest Finish: 1 (x7)
- Points scored: 956
The popular and outgoing Daniel Ricciardo was more like a big brother to Max Verstappen than a rival, helping the teenager to adjust to life in the public eye. As team-mates from 2016-2018, both men pushed each other to deliver on track. Ricciardo is the only team-mate to beat Verstappen, and he did it twice in their first two campaigns together, with the Australian finishing third overall in the championship in 2016. But in 2018, the Dutchman found another level and pulled comfortably ahead, claiming 11 podiums to Ricciardo’s two. With visions of a future as a number two driver, the Australian opted to move on and replaced Sainz at Renault and later at McLaren before returning to Faenza.
06
Pierre Gasly
- Team: Toro Rosso/AlphaTauri
- Grands Prix: 96
- Best Grid Position: 2 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 1 (x1)
- Points scored: 268
- Team: Red Bull Racing
- Grands Prix: 12
- Best Grid Position: 4 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 4 (x1)
- Points scored: 64
Pierre Gasly impressed with the Red Bull Junior Team – he is its most successful driver in the feeder series – and, on moving up to F1, proved his pace at Toro Rosso. But Gasly needed to hit the ground running and score solid points when he stepped up to Red Bull Racing in 2019. The Frenchman struggled to get to grips with the RB15. A big personality and a skilled racer, Ricciardo’s racing boots were a lot to fill, and with Mercedes running away with both championships, Red Bull Racing needed a points-scoring front-runner to partner Verstappen – and couldn’t wait for Gasly to gel. After 12 Grands Prix, Gasly was back in Faenza. That could have proven derailed most drivers’ careers but the likeable Frenchman dug deep and rediscovered his mojo, finishing second behind his former team-mate Verstappen at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix. In 2021, he scored the Italian outfit’s second Grand Prix win on home soil in Monza – or the first and only for the rebranded AlphaTauri Racing. Having proven himself again, he moved to Alpine.
07
Alex Albon
- Team: Scuderia Toro Rosso
- Grands Prix: 12
- Best Grid Position: 9 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 6 (x1)
- Points scored: 16
- Team: Red Bull Racing
- Grands Prix: 26
- Best Grid Position: 4 (x4)
- Highest Finish: 3 (x2)
- Points scored: 197
Alex Albon and Max Verstappen knew each other from their days in karting. In 2010, Albon beat Verstappen to the KF3 World Cup (a young Pierre Gasly was fourth), although Verstappen beat him in the WSK Euro Series and won the WSK World Series. He graduated from the Red Bull Junior Team to F1 in 2019 – the first Thai driver since Prince Bira in 1954 – and after just 12 starts with Toro Rosso, replaced Gasly at Red Bull Racing halfway through the season. Hardworking and humble, he consistently delivered points. If there was a problem, it was that the podium eluded Albon for all but two of his 26 races for Red Bull Racing while Verstappen continued to improve, widening the gulf between them. The team began to look for a driver who could help bring 1-2 finishes, win races and act as a rear-gunner for Verstappen in the title race. For the 2021 season, Albon was switched to Reserve and Test driver in favour of Pérez. Albon took it in his stride by performing crucial work in the sim to prepare the cars and strategies that helped Verstappen claim his first world crown. Albon also mentored Yuki Tsunoda and raced alongside Lawson in DTM before moving to fresh pastures with Williams.
08
Sergio Pérez
- Team: Red Bull Racing
- Grands Prix: 90
- Best Grid Position: 1 (x3)
- Highest Finish: 1 (x5)
- Points scored: 932
Having promoted two young drivers to partner Max Verstappen for 2021, Red Bull Racing decided on a new strategy and brought in the finished article. In Sergio Pérez, they had a driver who had been racing for 10 seasons. He had a record of 11 podiums, including one race win, and as a team leader, had helped guide Force India into a new era as first Racing Point and now Aston Martin. In his four championship campaigns with Red Bull Racing, he finished fourth, third and second in the title race. In 2023, he played his part in delivering the most dominant team campaign in F1 history. But in 2024, he simply couldn’t get to grips with the RB20 car and struggled to eighth overall. Worse, the team lost the Constructors’ Championship, sealing the Mexican’s fate. Having raced more Grands Prix with Verstappen than any other and to greater success, it was time to make way for a younger driver.
09
For the record: Max Verstappen (up to end of 2024)
- Grands Prix: 209
- Best Grid Position: 1 (x40)
- Highest Finish: 1 (x63)
- Team: Scuderia Toro Rosso
- Grands Prix: 23
- Best Grid Position: 5 (x1)
- Highest Finish: 4 (x2)
- Team: Red Bull Racing
- Grands Prix: 186
- Best Grid Position: 1 (x40)
- Highest Finish: 1 (x63)
- Drivers’ World Championships: 4
- Constructors’ World Championships: 2
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