Yuki Tsunoda needs to leave Red Bull. That much is clear after Liam Lawson won the battle to replace Sergio Perez in 2025.
There would still be some who would urge Tsunoda to hang around. Perhaps Lawson will struggle in the first half of the year, potentially setting up the kind of mid-season driver swap Red Bull have made in the past.
But the reality is that Christian Horner and Helmut Marko simply don’t have enough confidence in the 24-year-old. Even his best season yet didn’t change that.
Horner hinted that Lawson is more resilient than Tsunoda, something that wouldn’t necessarily be reflected in their respective results. Meanwhile, Marko says Tsunoda lacks ‘stability’.
Even if Lawson produces similar performances to Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Perez, it seems unlikely they’ll turn to his old teammate. Indeed, he’s out of contract at the end of the year, and his principal backers Honda are about to switch their resources over to Aston Martin.
Horner himself admits Tsunoda ‘can’t always be the bridesmaid’ (via The Race). As such, he recognises that he may need to let him go.
Aston Martin among Yuki Tsunoda’s potential options for 2026
Tsunoda may already be exploring potential options for the 2026 season. Red Bull exercised their option to retain him for 2025, but even if they have another, Horner’s comments suggest they’ll respect his wishes.
He’s unlikely to join an established frontrunner – Mercedes would only release George Russell or Kimi Antonelli for Max Verstappen, Ferrari have just signed Lewis Hamilton and McLaren feel they have F1’s best line-up in Lando Norris in Oscar Piastri. But he’ll still be an appealing option for midfield outfits.
Tsunoda may still have his prime years ahead of him at 24, but equally, he’ll pass the 100-race mark in 2025. He’s scored 91 points thus far and become especially good in qualifying, where he beat his teammates by a combined margin of 17 to 6 this term.
The £1.6bn Aston Martin team stands out as the most obvious exit route. They could become a force from 2026 thanks to their Honda deal, as well as their acquisition of Adrian Newey and Andy Cowell, arguably the best in F1 at optimising a chassis and an engine respectively.
Speaking on the Autosport podcast, journalist Alex Kalinauckas suggested Tsunoda could potentially succeed world champion Fernando Alonso. Given that Alonso is under contract for another two years, it may mean joining as a reserve driver at first.
“Honda ]are] going to Aston Martin in 2026 to effectively be the works team there, with that green team. The question will then become, if Alonso decides that he’s going to go fairly swiftly into the next era, would he be the person to replace Alonso?” he said.
“Many more people would prefer he would be the one to replace Lance Stroll. Unlikely, because we know how that team operates with Stroll’s father owning it, but I would look more towards Aston because of the financial element and Honda’s support, than at Red Bull.”
Elsewhere, Scott Mitchell-Malm says Haas would have moved for Tsunoda if Red Bull hadn’t locked him down. In theory, Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon should form a multi-year partnership, but the wild 2026 silly season showed how unpredictable F1’s driver market landscape can be.
Ayao Komatsu is evidently an admirer of his fellow countryman, and he also seems to have fans at Enstone. Indeed, Tsunoda was ‘floated’ as an option for Alpine in F1 paddock conversations this year and, given that Jack Doohan is only committed for a single season, a reunion with Pierre Gasly could be on the cards.
How Yuki Tsunoda reacted after finding out Liam Lawson had got the Red Bull seat
Honda celebrated Lawson’s RB move even though it was bad news for their driver. Privately, they may be determined to find a new home for Tsunoda.
If he’s not satisfied with the options they provide, he could look to align with a rival manufacturer. Peter Windsor says Toyota could target Tsunoda after entering a partnership with Haas.
According to Horner, Tsunoda seemed even more motivated for 2025 after the Lawson announcement. But history suggests he may not tow the party line when he’s behind the microphone after the winter break.
