Helmut Marko: “Yuki Tsunoda is fast, but he hasn’t achieved the success we expected”. Helmut Marko admits Yuki Tsunoda has underperformed at Red Bull.

From Liam Lawson to Yuki Tsunoda
After Sergio Perez’s departure from Red Bull at the end of 2024, the natural successor seemed to be Yuki Tsunoda. However, the team instead surprised many by selecting Liam Lawson, who had less F1 experience compared to the Japanese driver and former AlphaTauri regular. The gamble didn’t pay off for Red Bull, who eventually promoted Yuki Tsunoda for his home Grand Prix in Suzuka — the third round of the season. Yet, even this opportunity hasn’t translated into the results expected by the Milton Keynes-based outfit, which now heads into its home race in Austria.

Disappointing results, but hope remains
Yuki Tsunoda has scored just 5 points with Red Bull so far, struggling particularly in qualifying, which has hampered his ability to move up the grid. His underwhelming performance has contributed to the team slipping to fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, trailing McLaren by 200 points. Of Red Bull’s total 162 points, Max Verstappen has contributed 155 alone, underlining the team’s one-sided competitiveness. Yuki Tsunoda’s trajectory has fallen short of what Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko had envisioned.

“Being alongside Max is something special,” Helmut Marko told the BBC’s Inside the Track podcast. “I’m not so sure anyone today says, ‘My big goal is to be next to Max,’ but they want to be in Formula 1 — that’s for sure. Yuki started well, but he hasn’t delivered the success we expected. On Fridays, he’s just a tenth or two off Max, which hasn’t happened for years. Yuki now needs to convert that speed — which he clearly has — into points.”

Speculation has grown that Red Bull could replace Yuki Tsunoda mid-season with Isack Hadjar, who might be seen as Max Verstappen’s new teammate. However, Marko defended the Japanese driver and emphasized his development.

“He has talent and has also improved in terms of his personal approach. We all know how impulsive Yuki can be on the radio — he has worked on that, and he’s a fast driver,” Marko added. “He just needs to keep things tidy, not try to beat Max — which is impossible. I think he has accepted that now, and I hope he scores many more points.”