Hiroki Tsunoda’s impressive Japanese Grand Prix made history as he became the first Japanese driver to score within the points in his home country in 12 years.
His efforts also attracted the attention of one of the team’s most important figures.
In his post-race column, Supported by Red Bull speed week, Dr. Helmut Marko praised the drive from Kakuda at Suzuka and made some surprising comparisons along the way. Red Bull’s senior advisor said this about Tsunoda’s 10th place finish.
“On his second start, Yuuki put in a sensational performance. His overtaking maneuvers were the highlight of the day. The fans were a complete delight. His weekend was at the level of Max. [Verstappen], [Fernando] with alonso [company]. Perfect, a great performance under the pressure of his home race.” Written by Red Bull Senior Advisor.
Tsunoda, along with Visa Cash App RB F1 team teammate Daniel Ricciardo, is one of a number of Red Bull drivers aiming to move to the main team alongside Verstappen in 2025. Currently sitting in that seat is Sergio Perez. Liam Lawson, currently VCARB’s reserve driver, is also one of the drivers eyeing that spot, or any spot on the grid next season.
However, there’s one problem. Perez is off to his own fast start this year. He finished second behind Verstappen on Sunday but qualified on the front row with his teammate, giving Red Bull their first front row lockout since the 2023 season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.
Marko, who had already praised Perez’s performance in qualifying in Japan, further praised the Red Bull driver, calling his 2024 “the best season he has ever had with us.”
“Cecco was also very solid. He had some bad luck in the pit stop, but got back into the game with a great maneuver against Hamilton in the race. [130R] corner. He is definitely having his best season with us so far,” Marko said.
Next, Marko gave his opinion on the upcoming driver transfer market. This looks set to be one of the most transformative markets in F1’s history. Lewis Hamilton announced ahead of this season that he would join Ferrari in 2025, and with half the grid running on expiring contracts, there has been some interesting debate around the paddock.
But according to Marko, Red Bull is happy to remain silent and wait for the time to come.
“In my opinion, the fact that there are already such high levels of transfer rumors at the beginning of April is due to several factors,” Marko wrote. “Firstly, Hamilton announced his move to Ferrari very quickly. And if Radio Paddock is to be believed, Audi wants a quick decision for Carlos Sainz. Aston Martin also pressure from.
“We will not be taking part in these games. We will not hear from Red Bull Racing until mid-season about what is going on personnel-wise.”
However, it is rumored that Tsunoda could move to Red Bull in 2025, which is impressive considering how the season started. At the Bahrain Grand Prix, Tsunoda was furious at a series of orders from his team to pull Ricciardo away from him in the closing stages, and he vented his frustrations on the radio and on the cool-down lap.
But since then, Tsunoda has delivered a calm and patient performance. He earned his first VCARB points of the season with a seventh-place finish in Australia, followed by a 10th-place finish in Japan.
He has outpaced Ricciardo in all four races this season.
And when Mark sings your praises, you are doing something right.
