Helmut Marko Reveals Yuki Tsunoda's Reaction To Red Bull Rejection

Saajan Jogia | 15 Hours Ago

Nov 20, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Visa Cash App RB driver Yuki Tsunoda (22) at Las Vegas Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko shared that he spoke with VCARB driver Yuki Tsunoda following the decision to select Liam Lawson for a 2025 promotion to Red Bull over him, revealing Tsunoda's reaction to the news. Marko also outlined the key reasons behind choosing Lawson to partner with Max Verstappen at Red Bull.

Lawson stepped in this season following Daniel Ricciardo's exit after the Singapore Grand Prix. Red Bull used the rest of the races to assess Lawson and Tsunoda for a potential move in the future in case Sergio Perez's performance continued to suffer.

Perez's challenges saw no end, and the points difference with Verstappen in the championship standings caused Red Bull to lose the top two spots in the Constructors' Championship to McLaren and Ferrari. The team announced his departure this week, followed by Lawson's promotion. Addressing Lawson and Tsunoda's performances, Marko explained why the former was selected. Speaking to F1-Insider.com, he said:

"The engineers presented comparative figures, which we used as the basis for the decision. 

“In principle it was a luxury problem, both would have deserved the promotion.

“But Lawson may have more room for improvement in the future. 

“It was his mental strength in particular that tipped the scales in the end.”

After speaking to him on the phone, the 81-year-old advisor revealed the Japanese driver's reaction to the news of Lawson being promoted. He added:

“He’s in Japan at the moment and I spoke to him on the phone.

“He was relatively relaxed about the news. 

“I told him that he should continue to step on the gas with the Racing Bulls and then we’ll see. 

“He reacted positively.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner mentioned the factors that led the team to choose Lawson over Tsunoda. He said:

"What has really stood out with him has been his attitude and his ability to deal with pressure, Brazil was an interesting one.

"All the rookies looked a little bit like rookies, but Liam didn't drop the car, he didn't make mistakes and looked like a seasoned campaigner, and he is agile as well. 

"He has got broad shoulders, which you need to be in that seat, and Checo, certainly for three of the four years coped with that pressure, and Liam has got the right character to cope with the pressure of being Max's team-mate and the expectations on him are very clear.

"We are not expecting him to beat Max, he is a generational talent, but the objective is for Liam to be as close as he can and bag as many points so we don't have a 285 points deficit between the cars."