Schumacher warns Tsunoda he "would have refused" the Red Bull seat

Tsunoda's move to the Austrian team comes after Red Bull Racing decided to part ways with Liam Lawson after just two races, with the New Zealander returning to Racing Bulls after he and Tsunoda battled it out at the end of the 2024 season, with the Japanese driver originally overlooked.

Now, however, after a disappointing start to this campaign, Lawson will be replaced by Tsunoda, who will make the leap up to become Max Verstappen's teammate. But there are many warnings for the 24-year-old, with a challenging RB21 the biggest of his problems.

Schmacher can't see how Tsunoda will "gain anything"

According to Schumacher, Red Bull's RB21 is not only difficult to drive, but possibly even a lesser car than Racing Bulls' VCARB 02.

"I would have refused that switch," the German said in conversation with the German branch of Sky Sports. "That car is a problem at the moment. I almost feel Racing Bulls has a better car, or at least easier to drive. Tsunoda was fast there, and now he has to switch to a new team without any test miles, alongside Max Verstappen - I don't see how he can gain anything from that."

"If he gets a bit close, everyone says: that's normal. But if he is as far behind as Lawson, then his career is done. That is why as his manager, apart from Red Bull, I had finished the season at Racing Bulls and looked around elsewhere," continued the six-time Grand Prix winner.

However, Schumacher does believe that the experience that Tsunoda has in F1 compared to Lawson will help him manage the unpredictable and tricky nature of the RB21, potentially giving him a bit more joy than his New Zealnadr counterpart.

"Tsunoda has done an excellent job so far," Schumacher continued. "But in terms of speed, Lawson wasn't bad last year either - maybe even equivalent, sometimes even faster. And the same goes for Isack Hadjar now. The decisive question is: Who can get more out of that car? I do think that is Tsunoda, thanks to his experience. I think a car with oversteer suits him better than Lawson." 

Still, according to Schumacher, the real test of driving alongside Verstappen is yet to come: "Max drives at such an incredible level. Nobody can just compete with that. Certainly not in a car that is completely tailored to his driving style: lots of grip in the front, oversteer in the back - that suits Max's driving style. For a teammate, that's extremely difficult, especially without the testing opportunities like we used to have," concludes the German.

This article was written in collaboration with Nicole Mulder

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