Red Bull to decide Tsunoda's 2026 seat after Azerbaijan result

Yuki Tsunoda’s place at Red Bull Racing looks increasingly precarious after a season of inconsistent results, though his sixth place at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday offered a rare positive note. The Japanese driver, promoted to the senior Red Bull team early in 2025, produced his best finish since 2021 at the Baku City Circuit, but team chiefs and paddock observers say the next few races will be decisive for whether he remains in a top-seat beyond this year.

Tsunoda finished the Azerbaijan race in sixth, earning eight points after a late duel with former Racing Bulls team mate Liam Lawson. The result followed a setup upgrade to Red Bull’s RB21 introduced in Monza that several team figures credited with helping Tsunoda make progress on race pace. Red Bull Racing’s new principal, Laurent Mekies, described the weekend as Tsunoda’s strongest with the team and said the performance supplied a valuable clean sample for evaluation. Tsunoda himself said he had “unlocked something” since Monza and that long-run pace had improved, while conceding he still needs to marry short- and long-run form.

Despite that improvement, Tsunoda’s overall season has fallen short of Red Bull’s...