At the beginning of the year, Liam Lawson was chosen instead of Yuki Tsunoda to partner Max Verstappen at Red Bull for 2025. However, the New Zealander hasn’t had much luck so far. In the first two qualifying sessions of the year, Lawson was eliminated in Q1, and in Australia, he retired after losing the car and hitting the wall. In China, he qualified last and finished the race out of the points.
Rumors have surfaced stating that the Milton Keynes team has already made its decision. As we know, Red Bull is a tough team. Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, and Sergio Perez know this very well. The team has also admitted that it doesn’t have much time to fix the problems with the RB21.
Liam Lawson’s situation
Canal+ and the Dutch newspaper De Limburger reported that Red Bull has decided to swap Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson ahead of the Japanese GP, scheduled for next weekend.
According to some rumors, the decision was made due to the excellent work done by the Japanese driver. Also, since it would be his home race, he would feel more comfortable and be on a track he knows well.
However, there are also rumors that Honda – one of the main sponsors of Tsunoda’s career and expected to end its relationship with Red Bull at the end of this season – would be willing to pay millions of euros to secure a spot for the Japanese driver alongside Max Verstappen.
De Limburger stated that the engine supplier was ready to pay 10 million euros to guarantee the Japanese driver an opportunity in 2025. However, Horner rejected the proposal because he preferred Lawson. Now, the Red Bull team principal has re-contacted Honda to reach a deal.
After the Chinese GP, there were already rumors in the paddock, and when the issue was brought to the Japanese driver’s attention, he said he would jump at the opportunity. Tsunoda has always pursued Red Bull, but until recently, he hadn’t been considered by the Austrian team. Now it seems that everything is in his favor.
On the other hand, Liam Lawson will be sent back to RB alongside Isack Hadjar. Max Verstappen has openly stated that he believes Lawson would be faster in the smaller team.
Although there has been no official confirmation from Red Bull, everything seems to point to an official announcement. Helmut Marko also spoke highly of Tsunoda after his impressive performances in the first two races of the season.
He said: “Yuki is a different Yuki from previous years. He is in the best shape ever.”
“Of course, he has changed management. He has a different approach. He is more mature. It took some time, but now it seems to be working,” he concluded.
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