Racing Bulls boss Alan Permane has revealed how the delay in naming the 2026 driver line-up was out of "respect" for Yuki Tsunoda.
Tsunoda struggled at the senior Red Bull team, and towards the end of the 2025 season, it became clear he was not going to be retained alongside Max Verstappen, with Isack Hadjar replacing him.
However, Tsunoda was a contender for a return to Racing Bulls, with incumbent Liam Lawson and F2 rookie Arvid Lindblad pushing for a seat.
Ultimately, the final decision was announced after the Qatar GP, with Lawson and Lindblad selected for Racing Bulls with Tsunoda demoted to third and reserve driver duties for both teams.
Permane, who is starting his first full season as a team principal has explained how the decision was delayed, from a planned initial announcement in Mexico.
"It [was] a case of, honestly, pushing back, we started off by saying the announcement was going to be after Mexico, and then we wanted to just calm things down a bit," Permane told Motorsport Week.
"That’s largely because Red Bull were in a tight battle for the constructors’ championship.
"[Racing Bulls was] in a tight battle for the constructors’ championship, so we just didn’t want any more noise about it.
"Then by the time we got to Qatar, we’d made our decisions, and that’s why we announced it and out of respect for Yuki.
"Honestly, [it was] so that he can have a final race with Red Bull Racing, and I’m sure it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s his final race in Formula 1."
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