Tsunoda took Lawson news ‘relatively well’ – Marko

Red Bull F1 team advisor Dr. Helmut Marko says Yuki Tsunoda ‘deserved’ a promotion to the senior team. So, why did he still lose out?

Dec 25, 2024 - 03:00

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Tsunoda took Lawson news ‘relatively well’ – Marko

Yuki Tsunoda ‘deserved’ a promotion to Red Bull Racing’s senior F1 team, but lost out to Liam Lawson in a few key areas, says Dr. Helmut Marko. This is how the team Red Bull team advisor described the situation when rookie Liam Lawson (22) beat out the much more experienced Tsunoda to replace Sergio Perez for 2025.

Marko says the Japanese driver took the news ‘relatively well’. “He is in Japan right now and I spoke to him on the phone,” Marko told F1-insider. “I told him to keep pushing hard with the Racing Bulls (RBs) and then we’ll see what happens. It was a positive reaction,” added Marko.

TSUNODA TAKING NEWS WELL

Liam Lawson Red Bull — Just days into his first full Formula One off-season, Liam Lawson has won the most important race of his life. Image: F1

Team boss Christian Horner insisted it was a difficult decision to overlook Tsunoda, but indicated that the job of being Max Verstappen’s teammate is ‘daunting’. The matter was discussed at length in a meeting of Red Bull team officials and shareholders in the hours immediately after the Abu Dhabi finale.

“The engineers presented comparative figures, which we used as the basis for the decision. In principle, it was a luxury problem, and both deserved the promotion. But Lawson may have more room for improvement in the future. His mental strength in particular was the deciding factor in the end,” explained Horner.

MENTAL TOUGHNESS

F1 RB drivers — Yuki Tsunoda outpaced Daniel Ricciardo all season in the RB. Image: Planet F1

Horner also noted that Lawson’s ‘pace was a little bit better’ than Tsunoda’s as they went head-to-head over the last part of the season at RB. “What struck me most about Liam is that you put him in a tough situation, and he copes. He has a tough racing mentality and he’s not afraid to fight wheel-to-wheel and even use contact if necessary. So, I think he will do a great job for us,” concluded Horner.

Former RB (previously Toro Rosso-Alpha Tauri) team boss Franz Tost, however, has a clear warning for the young New Zealander. “All I can say about Liam is that he has to do his own thing and never try to compete with Max,” said the Austrian. “He is far from past his prime and has endless capacity. And he now has the self-confidence of a four-time world champion,” Tost said.

THINK ONLY ABOUT HIMSELF

Max Verstappen Formula One champion Las Vegas Grand Prix — Four-time champion: Max Verstappen celebrates. Image: Mark Thompson / AFP

“If Liam focuses on Max, it will only go wrong for him. He must only think about himself and try to improve the car together with Max. Anything else would be fatal and doomed to failure,” said Tost. As for Marko’s notorious brutality with driver decisions, he said: “He (Marko) always puts the pressure on straight away. You just know that if you dpn’t perform, you’ll be fired. That’s definitely tough, but it prepares you for Formula 1,” concluded Tost.

WILL LAWSON MAKE A GOOD TEAMMATE TO MAX?

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