Yuki Tsunoda doesn’t have much regrets joining Red Bull team in F1 2025 which has left him high and dry, as he reckons the Imola crash was huge drawback.
All of 2024 F1 season, Tsunoda was pushing to step up to Red Bull in 2025 as a replacement to Sergio Perez. But the management didn’t seem as keen to promote him considering the time taken by the Japanese driver to get up to speed at AlphaTauri/Visa Cash App RB.
He faced fresh challenge from Liam Lawson and lost out in the winter. It bumped him hugely which required Christian Horner to help him understand the situation. But two races in the 2025 season, Tsunoda had his chance when Red Bull decided early to drop the Kiwi.
He was relegated back to Visa Cash App RB, as Tsunoda got the elusive chance he wanted at Red Bull. He started off well but it all went downhill when he suffered a heavy crash in Imola. From then on, he was set back against Max Verstappen and was in the chasing pack, much like his predecessors.
That crash is the only regret Tsunoda has for his time at Red Bull. “No, I don’t have any regrets, but maybe the only thing I can say is Imola crash,” he said. “I think that made me probably back step quite a lot, you know, in coming parts, I would say. So, only that. My decision to the Red Bull is happy. I’m still taking the same one, exactly the same. Yeah, I think that made me stronger.
“But yeah, only thing is that, something that I feel, okay, something I didn’t make, some big mistake this year was that Imola crash. Yeah, that’s it.” When pressed further, Tsunoda reiterated about Imola but noted that the other regret he has is about not getting to drive the Visa Cash App RB car again which he built over the years in the current regulation.
“Probably I was saying that I didn’t have any regrets,” started Tsunoda. “The only regret I have is missing out that pretty good f**king car…the VCARB. But also throwing away your kids, your baby, because it’s the car that I developed with the team throughout the years, since we have this regulation, and I’m sure there’s my DNA inside as well.
“So, obviously missing out that, and finishing out without finally being able to get in the level that we wanted, is something that I miss. But at the same time, yeah, I don’t regret that decision, I would say. And still now, I think Imola is for sure something that I look back on, that frustrates me a lot still, because the crash was very unnecessary, and I could avoid it.
“But also, for sure, that made myself backstep in terms of parts. But at the same time, if you look at the whole season, maybe the second half of the season especially, maybe if you just look at the result of exiting Q1, and it’s consistently top 3, top 4, and you look at the results of that, but at the same time, if you see just the performance side, just even the time that I exit Q1, I can’t remember the last time I was behind him four tenths and a half, or five tenths and a half.
“Once I got to the exact same part, I was very competitive with him. And I think that’s what this league was struggling at, and actually I’m proud of myself for how I grew up, and how I grew up the season. Obviously, I can’t deny that he’s the best driver in the group. At the same time, I’m happy that I was able to catch up quite quickly at this level myself.
“Especially this very, very tight field, Q1 this year is one of the tightest fields in history,” summed up Tsunoda, who noted that Qatar sprint was his best race after finishing fifth, while Austria was the worst after he finished two laps down on the leaders.
Having lost his F1 seat to Isack Hadjar, it will be a new perspective for Tsunoda in 2026 from the sidelines and focusing a lot of his time in the simulator to help in the development programme. He will also be in line to replace if any of the four drivers face any difficulties.
He is looking to see things from different eyes. “I’m excited to see from a different perspective, different eyes next year, because it’s the first time in my career that I’m not racing,” said Tsunoda. “I was not really sitting down in the office while people are racing. I can’t refer to it this way, I can see more of the view, have a better communication with whatever every driver is doing.
“So maybe I can learn a lot of things that I never imagined, so I’m excited for that. I’ll also try to be in this shape as much as possible. Whenever any opportunity comes, I’ll smash it. Until then, keep my shape good and wait for it,” summed up Tsunoda.
Fellow rival and one who has seen the Red Bull ways, Williams’ Alexander Albon had kind words too for Tsunoda. As a fellow Asian driver on the grid, the Thai wants to see the Japanese driver back on it as soon as possible. Not just because of this ethnicity, but because of the talent he has.
“Clearly, it’s sad for Yuki,” said Albon to media. “I think Yuki is an extremely talented driver. Personally, I think he deserves a place in Formula 1. I think he’s a reserve driver as of now. I hope he can find a way to make an impact with the team. He’s in a very similar place to where I was in 2021. I don’t know…there’s still opportunity.
“How does Arvid perform and how does Liam perform in that area? Is there an opportunity for him back? I think that’s where they put him. I guess I’m biased. I’m very biased towards the fellow Asians in the paddock. I hope he can…he’s got the talent. I hope to see him back,” summed up Albon.
Here’s Yuki Tsunoda on not feeling any different
