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Liam Lawson may not be having an easy time at Red Bull Racing, but there is one driver who feels ready for a top-tier seat.

That someone? Yuki Tsunoda., the driver who has been waiting for a call from Red Bull for years.

Yuki Tsunoda: “I’m in good shape…”

When it came time to promote a Red Bull junior driver to the primary team for the 2025 Formula 1 season, the Formula 1 team decided Liam Lawson should be Sergio Perez’s replacement — not Yuki Tsunoda.

It was a bold move, as Tsunoda is entering his fifth year in the junior team, while Lawson only had 11 Grands Prix under his belt. And so far, it doesn’t seem to be shaping up.

At the season opener in Australia, Lawson qualified 18th and crashed in the wet, retiring from his Red Bull debut. By contrast, Tsunoda qualified fifth and finished 12th.

Tsunoda and Racing Bulls teammate Isack Hadjar both looked strong at the Chinese Grand Prix, too, until the team opted for a two-pit stop strategy. Neither driver was able to work back up into the points as the competition remained out.

But Lawson didn’t fare much better. He finished 12th, out of the points, and behind Hadjar. Talks have already kicked up suggesting that Lawson may be dropped from the team in the near future.

More analysis from the Chinese Grand Prix:

👉 Why Max Verstappen cannot paper over Red Bull’s cracks forever

👉 Revealed: The shocking performance drop in late Lando Norris drama

Despite being a longtime hire at Red Bull’s junior F1 team, Yuki Tsunoda has been regularly passed over for promotion.

As Red Bull driver Sergio Perez began to struggle in 2024, multiple names entered the conversation for the seat in 2025: Daniel Ricciardo, Carlos Sainz, Liam Lawson. It seems as if Tsunoda was never truly considered.

Though he did secure a post-season test with Red Bull, the decision was more a favor to Honda than a statement of intent on Red Bull’s part.

Tsunoda was asked if he felt he’d do better in the RB21 after the Chinese Grand Prix, to which he responded, “I didn’t drive in that, so I don’t know the pace difference between me and Max.

“I didn’t feel that way in Abu Dhabi.”

He acknowledged that “obviously as a driver always you expect to drive different” as a way to note Lawson’s struggles, but that was followed by a statement of intent.

“I mean, I’m in good shape, so…”

Could Tsunoda perform better than Lawson in the Red Bull? There’s no way to know unless he gets a shot.

Read next: Christian Horner ‘feeling sorry’ for Liam Lawson as replacement speculation addressed