Formula 1 is a hard sport to break into. Many young drivers spend their whole lives working towards one goal: to become a Formula One driver. Yuki Tsunoda managed to accomplish this and is impressing everyone in the VCARB-01. But Red Bull has not been treating him fairly.
Red Bull Racing (RBR) has a consistency issue when it comes to their driver lineup. They drop drivers like hot potatoes without regard for the driver or the sport. The only thing Red Bull sees is the points their drivers bring in – but they are a Formula 1 team after all.
One of the only constants at Red Bull these past few years has been Max Verstappen having the main seat. Another one would be Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull’s Junior Team, VCARB. Since 2021, he has been a driver for Red Bull’s 2nd team in F1.
Why Yuki Tsunoda Should Be Promoted to Red Bull Racing
Yuki Tsunoda is constantly being overlooked for the Red Bull seat. The team has continuously looked over him despite racing better than most of his previous teammates. During his three years, the only teammate that has outplaced Tsunoda is Gasly, and that was after Gasly was dropped by Red Bull Racing in 2019. During the 2023 season, he outperformed all three of his teammates.
⚠️ | Sergio Perez on the fact that he is nearing the end of his career:
“I don’t see myself much longer in Formula 1.”
“For now I have two more years on my contract, and two years in F1 is a long time, but I know the end is getting closer and closer.”
“I want to finish my… pic.twitter.com/TmxzVmy8AM
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) September 26, 2024
This year, Tsunoda has scored the majority of the points for VCARB in the Constructors’ Championship. While he has scored 22 points, his teammate until the Singapore GP scored only 12 points. Now we will get to see how Lawson performs in comparison to Tsunoda.
Compared to the few races Daniel Ricciardo raced in 2023, Tsunoda placed higher in 5 out of the 7 races. This season, he has ranked higher than Ricciardo 9 times and higher than Sergio Perez in the RB20 7 times. Tsunoda quickly worked his way up the ranks to Formula 1 because he had the skill and the drive.
Why is Red Bull Racing wasting such a talented driver on a junior team?
Why People Doubt Yuki Tsnuoda’s Future
Tsunoda has proven himself as a steady and stable driver these past three years. So why is he not first in line for the seat? Better yet, why are Liam Lawson and Tsunoda on the same level when it comes to the battle for the seat?
It could be because of the doubt surrounding Tsunoda’s accession to Formula 1. Some people believe that he is only driving for the Red Bulls Junior Team because of the Honda contract. Although he came up through the Honda Formula Dream Project, that doesn’t mean that Tsunoda bought his way into Formula 1. His performances in the past couple of years have proved this fact.
⚠️ | Helmut Marko says both Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda will compete for the Red Bull seat for 2025:
“I don’t know in how many races he [Lawson] was faster than Yuki, but that’s why we decided that now is the time to make a comparison with Yuki. Who of the two is the fastest?”… pic.twitter.com/OANe0KbBIw
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) October 11, 2024
Another reason people do not believe Tsunoda should be driving for Red Bull is because of his temper. They say that there can’t be two Max Verstappen on a team. Sure, Tsunoda does have a temper. But what professional athlete doesn’t?
Yuki Tsunoda has proven himself time and time again. Red Bull needs to promote him or allow him to rise with other teams.
