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Yuki Tsunoda will be promoted from Red Bull’s sister team RB for his home race at Suzuka on April 4-6, Dutch newspaper Telegraaf and French broadcaster Canal+ said.
Yuki Tsunoda might replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull (Picture credit: AP)
Japanese motorsports racing driver Yuki Tsunoda is speculated to replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull. The 24-year-old will be promoted from Red Bull’s sister team Racing Bulls for his home Grand Prix event in Suzuka, Japan, in April. Lawson struggled to deliver in the 2025 season’s first two races.
Following a poor show at the Chinese Grand Prix, Red Bull’s senior management held a meeting in Dubai. They reportedly concluded on replacing Lawson with Tsunoda to improve their performances this season.
While Red Bull hasn’t officially confirmed a driver change, ESPN claims Dutch newspapers De Telegraaf and De Limburger reported a swap was on the cards.
Lawson was promoted from Racing Bulls to replace Mexican star Sergio Perez for Red Bull’s main lineup. He was at Racing Bulls with Tsunoda for six races last season. He was drafted in as a replacement for Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo before getting the preference for a Red Bull seat.
Lawson was knocked out at the first stage of all three qualifying sessions. He has yet to score points, whereas his teammate, Max Verstappen, is second in the title race with 36 points.
Tsunoda, on the other hand, has shown his speed on both race weekends. He was 12th in Australia, only finishing out of the points on Sunday at Shanghai. He suffered the setback because of Racing Bull’s flawed two-stop pit strategy.
Tsunoda made his Formula 1 debut with AlphaTauri in 2021 to become the first Japanese racer to perform on the grid since Kamui Kobayashi in 2014.
As for Verstappen, he was against a switch from the get-go. After the Chinese Grand Prix, he spoke about how Red Bull’s RB21 was a difficult car to handle and hence, Lawson should not be blamed for the poor string of performances.
“If you look at the difference between the two drivers at the other teams, they are all closer together. It also shows that our car is extremely tough,” Verstappen said, as per multiple outlets.
“I think if you put Liam in the Racing Bulls car, he will go faster. I think so. That car is easier to drive than ours. I also notice that when I talk to Liam,” the four-time world champion added.
Red Bull does have a history of swapping out Verstappen’s teammates with the Dutchman being their clear number-one priority. It will be exciting to see if Red Bull will field Tsunoda in the Japanese Grand Prix that begins on April 6.
