Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft has claimed that despite Red Bull swapping Liam Lawson for Yuki Tsunoda, the team still has the “wrong driver” if they want to fight for the constructors’ title this season.
After signing rookie Lawson to replace Sergio Perez for 2025, it took the Milton Keynes outfit just two Grand Prix weekends to move him back to the sister team, Racing Bulls. Tsunoda was promoted in his place ahead of his home race in Japan, and since then, the driver has had three top-10 finishes.
As the team works to reclaim the constructors’ title after McLaren’s 2024 success, Croft argues that the team needs a different driver alongside four-time Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen if they are to compete seriously. After eight races, Red Bull is third in the standings, 176 points behind championship leaders, McLaren.
During the Sky Sports F1 Show podcast, Croft was asked if another driver could cope with the temperamental RB21. He responded:
“I think the answer to your question is yes, but they’re not going to sign Lando Norris or George Russell or Carlos Sainz or drivers of that calibre. And with all due respect to Yuki, who I know is now the most experienced Japanese driver in Formula 1 history, he’s not a Lando Norris. He’s a good driver, but he’s not a race-winning driver yet. One day, I hope he is.
“Now, I suppose the temptation for Red Bull is just to carry on doing what they’re doing, and then maybe they will find, you know, in Arvid Lindblad or whoever’s coming through the ranks after him – or even Isack Hadjar – a driver that can live with Max. But Max is exceptional. Max is a phenomenal talent, and Max will extract way more performance out of any car, I think, at the moment, than most drivers on the grid. He’s the form driver on the grid.
“And to say that he’s got to get within two or three tenths of Max is a tall order – a tough order. But Red Bull is a championship-winning team, and therefore it’s not an unrealistic ask for that second driver in the Red Bull car.
Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Erik Junius
“I personally think they’ve got the wrong driver still, and they should have gone – if they want to win a constructors’ championship – go and get a driver that is good enough. And Yuki might well be in time; I don’t think he’s proved it [yet].”
When asked by host Simon Lazenby who he felt the team should have signed instead, Croft added:
“They should have got Carlos Sainz, but for whatever reason, that didn’t happen. Carlos Sainz was the driver available on the market for next year. Now, once you’ve not got Carlos Sainz, who are you looking for in the future?
“Lando’s locked into a long-term contract, George Russell’s out of contract at the end of this year… It would be an interesting combo, it would give us plenty to talk about. I don’t think there’s any animosity between George and Max, they’re just fiercely competitive human beings who have not always seen eye to eye on the track at any given moment. But that’s the calibre of driver they’re going to have to get.”
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