Christian Horner just put even more pressure on Yuki Tsunoda with Liam Lawson comment at Japanese Grand Prix

Yuki Tsunoda is the latest driver to walk into the second Red Bull seat after replacing Liam Lawson for the Japanese Grand Prix.

The 24-year-old has finally been given his chance at the Milton Keynes-based outfit after four years at Racing Bulls. Many felt Tsunoda deserved the seat outright, but Red Bull decided to sign Lawson over the winter to replace Sergio Perez.

The team had hoped the New Zealander would be an improvement on Perez’s dismal form in 2024. However, Lawson desperately struggled to get accustomed to the RB21 as he failed to reach Q2 in the opening two races, starting last twice in Shanghai.

Meanwhile, Tsunoda reached Q3 in every qualifying with Racing Bulls as the VCARB 02 proved to be an easier package to handle. With Lawson lacking confidence behind the scenes, Red Bull opted to take him out of the seat ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix.

Tsunoda is now looking to make an impact – Red Bull will need him to as the team lack the pace to catch McLaren at the front. The Japanese driver will need time to get used to the difficult nature of the RB21, but Christian Horner is already putting pressure on him.

Christian Horner says Liam Lawson would have taken ‘half a season’ to get used to the RB21 – the pressure is on Yuki Tsunoda

Speaking after FP1 at Suzuka via Sky Sports F1, Horner was questioned on Red Bull’s decision to bring in Tsunoda. Lawson has now had the shortest stint at the team in their history with just two races.

The Kiwi driver was clearly struggling to get used to the car’s sensitive setup – something Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Perez also found difficult before being dropped.

Horner says it would have taken Lawson ‘half a season’ to get used to the car, hence why they decided to sign Tsunoda: “I think he brings experience and I think that knowledge is very useful as this season is all going to be about a development race,” he said.

“That’s why we took the decision early. I think Liam would have got there but it might have taken five, six, seven races or half a season. We don’t have that amount of time.

“After discussing it internally, we decided: ‘Right, we’ve got to rip the plaster off this now and get on with it’ and that’s what we chose to do and Yuki’s jumped in and done a good job initially.”

It is true that the Milton Keynes outfit do not have time to catch their rivals – Helmut Marko says Red Bull have five races to update the car before it is ‘too late’. However, Horner is alluding to the idea that Tsunoda will get used to the RB21 faster than he thinks Lawson would have.

The reality is that the Japanese driver also has limited experience in the RB21 and the team in general. To think he will be able to integrate himself into the team straight away is another indication that Red Bull are continuing to put pressure on the second driver when time is needed to develop.

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Yuki Tsunoda has had an encouraging start to life at Red Bull

Despite the pressure on his back to deliver results, the 24-year-old is not looking to waste his opportunity. Tsunoda impressed Helmut Marko on the simulator and even said the RB21 was not difficult to drive.

The Japanese driver seemed to prove that on the track at Suzuka. He was sixth fastest in FP1, six tenths off the top spot, but more importantly, he was only a tenth off of Verstappen.

These sessions counts for almost nothing – evidenced by the fact he was 18th in a disrupted FP2. But FP1 is a clear sign of improvement from the second Red Bull car – Lawson was never able to get that close to Verstappen in his two appearances earlier this season.

Tsunoda is targeting a podium at Suzuka, ignoring Horner’s advice to Lawson about it taking time to prove himself. The 24-year-old knows he will be playing second fiddle to Verstappen, but he is not looking to shy away from battling the four-time champion.