VCARB Chief Declares Yuki Tsunoda As Key To Red Bull Junior Team's Future

Saajan Jogia | Aug 14, 2024

May 2, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; RB racing driver Yuki Tsunoda (22) walks into the team village in advance of the F1 Miami Grand Prix at the Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports / Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

VCARB driver Yuki Tsunoda has been declared the "key" to the Red Bull junior team's future in Formula 1 by team principal Laurent Mekies, considering the "important steps" he took over the years to improve his performance by a huge margin to lead the team's position in the current Constructors' Championship.

The Japanese driver's contract extension for the upcoming season is a testament to the impressive form he has showcased since the start of the 2024 season. Outperforming his teammate Daniel Ricciardo in most races, he has accumulated 22 points, nearly double Ricciardo's total of 12 so far.

Despite his improved performance, he remains out of consideration for a promotion to Red Bull. Ahead of the summer break, when Sergio Perez’s future alongside Max Verstappen appeared uncertain, Ricciardo and reserve driver Liam Lawson were linked as potential replacements. It is speculated that the Red Bull hierarchy doubts Tsunoda's ability to compete effectively with Verstappen, leaving him out of contention. But Tsunoda is confident about his ability to "fight hard" against the Dutchman.

Mekies recognizes Tsunoda's ambition and views it as essential for retaining the Japanese driver within the Red Bull family while asserting that VCARB is the ideal environment for his continued growth. Whether this will eventually lead to a promotion to Red Bull remains uncertain. Speaking to the media, he said:

"He has been making important steps inside and outside the car, and at the end of the day, of course we can wait - we have the driver options on our three guys.

"But I think at that stage it was only fair to recognize the huge steps that he had made and to simply confirm that we want - Yuki's ambitious, we are ambitious and he is key to our project for the future and we feel that we offer him the right platform to do another step."

The 24-year-old driver began his journey with VCARB in 2021 when the team was still known as AlphaTauri. He has shown steady improvement each year, notably outperforming Nyck de Vries early in 2023 and maintaining an edge over Ricciardo. His continued "phenomenal" performance was a major factor in VCARB's decision to extend his contract, announced during the Canadian GP weekend. Mekies added:

"I think the step that Yuki had been showing in the first few races [of 2024], to the point where we made that call, was phenomenal.

"That's my personal evaluation of it, it was phenomenal.

"Yes we have seen drivers evolving, rarely from year three to year four of that magnitude, so I think he has been delivering incredibly fast and consistent weekends... [on] different tracks, different conditions."