Red Bull advisor has delivered his verdict of Yuki Tsunoda’s debut performance at the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix following his replacement of Liam Lawson. Despite a disappointing qualifying, the driver managed to hold his own in the RB21.
Speaking to Motorsport.com after the race, Marko was content with the performance exhibited by his driver.
“It was good. It was just unlucky that in Qualifying 2 he had this mistake. But otherwise it was fine,” he said.
The 24-year-old qualified 15th after a mistake saw him lose time in Q2. After a penalty for Williams’ Carlos Sainz, he was promoted to 14th while team-mate Max Verstappen started in pole position. The Japanese driver made two places, finishing 12th behind Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.
Speaking after the race, Tsunoda admitted that he “expected more.”
“I’m happy with the race, in terms of my performance,” he said. “But obviously, in terms of results, it’s quite tough, especially for my home Grand Prix.
“I was definitely expecting more, and you know, at least I wanted to finish in a point, so it’s mixed feelings.”
This race was a learning moment for the driver, who has had limited time behind the wheel of the challenging RB21.
“The 53, 54 laps I got in this race was the most laps I had in this car. Every lap I was learning, and finally, I got decent laps in the car, and I definitely feel more confidence in the car. I just feel overall controlled more towards the end of the race.
Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Bryn Lennon – Formula 1
“I’m happy considering the amount of time I had, but because of [it being my] home Grand Prix, I just wanted to finish in the points. I just have to build the pace. It’s fortunate that there’s Max that I can learn from. So I just keep doing what I’m doing. I’m excited for Bahrain, actually.”
Verstappen provided the Milton Keynes team with a masterclass performance today, with Marko commenting on his chances of a fifth drivers’ championship.
“I mean the car, fortunately, got a very good setup. And Max was unbelievable: 53 laps without any mistakes and absolutely on limit,” he said.
“21 races still to come. It will be tight but we have to improve our car, that’s clear.”
