Yuki Tsunoda suffered his first retirement of the 2025 Formula 1 season and his first for Red Bull at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The second Red Bull seat has continued to be a poisoned chalice in 2025. While Max Verstappen has claimed one win and two pole positions, his teammates have been languishing behind.
Liam Lawson was dropped after just two races after failing to reach Q2 or score a point in the RB21. Despite thinking he had a higher ceiling than Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull have demoted the New Zealander back to Racing Bulls, with the Japanese driver going the other way.
Finishing 12th at his home Grand Prix at Suzuka, Tim Coronel slammed Tsunoda’s performance as he failed to score points while Verstappen won the race. Things improved in Bahrain as he reached Q3 and finished eighth.
Scoring the second RB21’s first points of the season put the 24-year-old in higher regard than Lawson, but he was brought back down to earth in Jeddah. Tsunoda ‘did a Lando Norris’ as he crashed in FP2.
The Japanese driver recovered well to reach Q3 in back-to-back Grand Prix.. However, his race was over before the first four corners after a collision with Pierre Gasly, ending a disappointing weekend.
Jaime Alguersuari tells Yuki Tsunoda to ‘wake up’ after qualifying nine tenths behind Max Verstappen in Saudi Arabia
Despite having limited experience with the RB21 and Red Bull in general, the 24-year-old has ambitions to beat his teammate. Damon Hill loves Tsunoda’s attitude towards Verstappen, but the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix highlighted the mountain he has to climb.
The four-time champion secured pole position by just one hundredth of a second over Oscar Piastri. Tsunoda stayed relatively close to Verstappen in Q1 and Q2, but the pace deficit in Q3 was alarming.
Qualifying in eighth, the Japanese driver was almost a second behind his teammate’s pole time. Speaking on The After Lap Podcast, former Red Bull junior Jaime Alguersuari told Tsunoda to ‘wake up’ after his ‘unacceptable’ pace deficit to Verstappen.
“He was way behind. Let’s see if we think it’s OK that a teammate finishes nine tenths behind another,” he said.
“And I don’t care if his name is Max Verstappen or Fernando Alonso, or if it just can’t happen, it is unacceptable that if we accept that.
“Oh well, he made Q3’, but you finished nine tenths off, man, no. That is, your teammate has taken pole position and you are nine tenths behind.
“In Q1 everything was close, but in Q3 the track evolution is big. Everyone has put on new tyres and you have to make the difference. Man, you have the world champion car and your teammate is either winning races or being on the podium, I mean wake up.”
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Who will race in the second Red Bull in 2026?
Tsunoda has a one-year contract with Red Bull, meaning he is fighting for his future this season. The Milton Keynes outfit are hoping he will be an improvement on Lawson – thus far, he is proving to be just that.
The 24-year-old is able to get the car into the final part of qualifying and has impressed the hierarchy. Christian Horner is ‘very happy’ with Tsunoda’s attitude as he looks to grasp his opportunity with Red Bull.
With his future uncertain, the Japanese driver will have to be on top of his game to remain in the sport. Guenther Steiner thinks Red Bull will re-sign Tsunoda, but has warned there are other drivers ready to take his place.
Steiner thinks Isack Hadjar could replace Tsunoda after impressing at Racing Bulls thus far in 2025. A return to Red Bull for Lawson should also not be ruled out, as a move back to the junior team could reignite his confidence.
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