Tsunoda does not find the RB21 'tricky': 'My setup'll be different to Max'

After two rounds into the 2025 Formula One season, Red Bull Racing have announced that Yuki Tsunoda will replace Liam Lawson from the Japanese GP onwards. The driver has set his sights on a clear goal next weekend.

This week, it was confirmed that Max Verstappen is set to have a new teammate just after two weekends have been completed in the 2025 Formula 1 season. After Liam Lawson failed to score a single point and got eliminated already in Q1 on three occasions (including Sprint Qualifying), it was announced that he will return to Racing Bulls, while Yuki Tsunoda gets the promotion from the Faenza-based team.

Tsunoda aims for the podium

The Japanese driver has a clear target for his home Grand Prix, as he spoke for the first time publicly at a Honda event at their Aoyama headquarters. "To be honest, I never expected to be racing for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix," the driver began.

"Of course, I was happy about joining Red Bull, but when I thought about it carefully, the idea of suddenly racing for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix felt so unreal," Tsunoda continued, after saying it's 'fate' that he is able to compete for the team at their last event together in Suzuka with Honda. Next season, the Japanese manufacturer will provide power units for Aston Martin, while Red Bull will develop their own engine for the first time in collaboration with Ford.

"I don’t want to raise expectations too much, but for this Japanese Grand Prix, I want to finish on the podium. That said, I know it won’t be easy right from the start."

Still, he does not want to get carried away either. "My priority is to first understand the car, how it behaves compared to the VCARB. If I can naturally enjoy driving it as I get familiar with it in FP1, then the results will follow. And if that leads to a podium finish, that would be incredible."

RB21 'not that challenging'

While Tsunoda was excited to get the opportunity to drive for Red Bull Racing, he explained he remained calm and reached out to the one's that supported him. He also had a busy schedule. He also completed his seat fit, something he has done before but thought has no purpose given he at the time competed for Racing Bulls. "I spent about two days in the simulator. From that experience, I didn’t find the car to be that challenging to drive."

Many point to the fact that Red Bull develop their car for Max Verstappen's liking, however, Tsunoda did not find the current car any odd. "If you ask whether it felt tricky to handle, I wouldn’t say it gave me a particularly strange feeling, at least in the simulator. Of course, how I want to set up the car is probably different from Max. I want to develop my own car set-up, get a good understanding of it, and gradually get up to speed from FP1."

Team principal Christian Horner often mentions that being the Dutchman's teammate is the hardest job in the competition. Pressure will also be on the driver, after such a change was made so early on into the season. When he was told at the Honda headquarters by the interviewer that they do not want to put any additional pressure on him, he jokingly concluded: "Yes, please pile on the expectations and pressure!"

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