Yuki Tsunoda concedes surprise at Red Bull switch difficulty

Yuki Tsunoda has conceded that moving to Red Bull was "more difficult" than he expected, following his early 2025 switch.

The Japanese driver was promoted from Racing Bulls to Red Bull to replace Liam Lawson after just two races; however, Tsunoda faced immense difficulties with the RB21.

He struggled alongside Max Verstappen and never truly got to grips with Red Bull’s car, with one of his biggest low points being a terrifying crash at Imola.

By the end of the season, Tsunoda had scored just 30 points for the Milton Keynes-based outfit across 22 races.

As a result, finishing second in the constructors’ standings proved too big a task for Red Bull, who had to settle for third.

Ultimately, Tsunoda has lost his race seat for 2026, instead becoming the Austrian squad’s test and reserve driver."There were definitely things that were more difficult than I had imagined," Tsunoda said, speaking to the Japanese branch of DAZN. 

"The team structure is similar to Racing Bulls in some ways, but there were also things that were completely different. I was surprised by how big the difference actually was." 

Discussing those differences, Tsunoda initially joked: "The hotels were a lot better! One big difference is that when the car isn't working well, they don't shy away from making big set-up changes. 

"They dare to be aggressive – even just before qualifying or at times that could affect the championship. That really impressed me."