A new driver and a new challenge against what seemed to be a quick catching McLaren was awaiting for Red Bull at the start of this season.
Things, however, aren’t turning out quite as they were hoping for in Milton Keynes.
Lawson – called to fill Sergio Perez’s place alongside Max Verstappen – was sent back to Racing Bulls after only two races, McLaren is dominating both Championships and things don’t seem to run too smoothly for Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull as well.
Rising pressure
Since joining the team in Japan, Tsunoda has scored a total of 10 points in 7 races.
Particularly he has been struggling in the last two rounds, Monaco and Barcelona, where he couldn’t make it into Q3.
In the almost 10 years Verstappen has spent with Red Bull, no one of the 6 teammates he worked with has come remotely close to his pace.
Not Ricciardo, not Gasly, not Albon, not Perez, and certainly not Lawson and Tsunoda so far.
Red Bull has quite the reputation about quick switches and Team Principal Christian Horner is already getting asked about replacements.
Tsunoda’s former teammate at Racing Bulls, rookie Isack Hadjar looks like the most likely candidate for the seat.
He already scored 21 points so far, reaching the finish line in P6 and P7 in the last two rounds.
But the team doesn’t seem too rushed for a change.
“I think I’m going to take a leaf out of Flavio [Briatore’s] book and say, ‘I don’t want to answer it’, ” Horner replied to media in Barcelona when asked about it.
“Look, it’s early days for Yuki. He’s still settling in. He’s been in Q3, scored points, he’s scored points from the pit lane, he’s had a few incidents as well, so he has a long way to go. We’ll decide. We’ve got plenty of time on our side.”
Finding confidence
To be fair the RB21 certainly isn’t offering an enjoyable drive, as Verstappen himself, despite winning two GPs so far, has been complaining about the performances of the car.
Tsunoda has proved to be a good driver in the past, being consistent in his days at Alpha Tauri / Racing bulls and Red Bull team boss Horner this time seems keen to give him time to adjust.
“I think the only thing that we can do is give him time and support and try and get a set-up that he’s got confidence in,” he explained.
“Driving these cars is all about confidence, and that’s what he needs to find. I think he’ll get there.
“He’s fast. He’s just got to piece it all together. We keep seeing flashes of performance. We just need to see him put it all together. I think he’s capable of that.”
