The spotlight will be on Yuki Tsunoda, as the Japanese driver will make his debut with Red Bull during the Suzuka GP weekend, his home race. This will surely be an emotional moment and a great opportunity for Honda, which, after years of success, is preparing to say goodbye to Red Bull at the end of 2025.
This explains the decision by the higher-ups at Milton Keynes to accelerate the switch with Lawson. The New Zealand driver might have deserved a few more races to adapt to the challenging RB21. However, with the Japanese Grand Prix approaching, Marko and Horner decided to bring Yuki Tsunoda in earlier to have him alongside Verstappen at Suzuka.
However, the number 22 will not be the only Japanese driver on track at Suzuka. According to an announcement from Alpine, Ryo Hirakawa will take Jack Doohan’s place in the FP1 session. “I’m really happy. I can’t wait to get in the A525 for the first free practice session,” Ryo Hirakawa said. “I think back to 2007, the first time I watched my first Japanese Grand Prix. The track was different back then because the race was held at Fuji. That moment marked the start of my career, and being able to race on this track is truly a dream come true.”
“I’ve worked a lot in the simulator recently. I hope the weather will be good since we only have one hour of track time. I’ll do my best to help the team with the setup choice,” the Japanese driver concluded.
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