With Max Verstappen having confirmed his immediate Formula One future is with Red Bull Racing for 2026, attention is swiftly turning to who may be his team mate. Whilst the seat alongside Max has always been difficult to fill successfully, Yuki Tsunoda is making the worst job for some time in the number two Red Bull car.
The Japanese driver has scored just seven points since being promoted to the team in round three of this season, although the team have cut him some slack given he is often in line behind his team when the upgrades are handed out. Yet even so, with just eight points to his name, Yuki is eighteenth in the F1 driver standings with just Oli Bearman and Franco Colapinto behind him.
With ten race weekends to go, Tsunoda is will need to deliver a huge upturn in form if he is not the latest of the Red Bull juniors to fail spectacularly when promoted alongside Max. In Zadnvoort Tsunoda could only manage P16 in practice one, although his fortunes improved in the afternoon as he was seventh on the timesheets.
‘No rush’ says Mekies
Yet he remained 0.4 seconds behind his team mate which is not good enough and both drivers are believed to be sprite equal equipment in the Netherlands.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has made clear that the team is in no rush to confirm who will partner Max Verstappen in 2025, emphasising that the line-up decision will be taken only after careful evaluation later in the season. With the 2026 regulation overhaul looming, Mekies underlined that Red Bull’s choice must serve the long-term, making patience the priority.
The second Red Bull seat has long been one of the most difficult to occupy. Since Sergio Perez’s exit, both Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson have had stints alongside Verstappen, while Racing Bulls prospect Isack Hadjar has emerged as the latest name in contention. Tsunoda currently holds the drive and is expected to see out the remainder of the season.
Talking up Tsunoda
Speaking to Canal+ in Zandvoort, Mekies explained: “The reality for us is that we’re not in any hurry. We’re lucky to have Yuki in the car; we have Racing Bulls, which is working very well, and where we can also evaluate our young drivers.”
While Tsunoda still has a chance of retaining his seat, Hadjar is increasingly spoken of as the most likely heir. Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko offered further insight into the process, telling Sky Germany: “Around September or October we want to have a few more races to observe, and then we’ll make the decisions.”
Mekies pointed to Tsunoda’s recent progress as evidence that the Japanese driver remains under serious consideration. “Yuki took a real step forward at Spa and also in Budapest in terms of his deficit to Max,” he said. He also praised Lawson’s steady improvement and Hadjar’s consistently strong season with Racing Bulls. “Isack has been doing an extraordinary job since the start of the year and keeps surprising us at every race.”
Horner meeting with Briatore confirmed
Indycar champ firmly denied
For Red Bull, next year’s rules reset makes a careful approach logical. Mekies acknowledged the impatience outside the team but insisted that decisions will be made on performance rather than pressure. “If you look at it from Red Bull’s point of view, it’s hard to see why we would be in a hurry to make this decision,” he concluded.
Of course with Alex Palou claiming the IndyCar title during the F1 break, the Spanish driver has once again been linked with above to Formula One. Will Buxton fired up the rumour mill following Palou’s fourth title in five years, posting on X: “Palou is, hands down, one of the best open wheel drivers in the world right now. Could he win in F1? Absolutely. With the right car.’Would he get the right car though? Unless it’s a top 4 team in F1, why walk away from making history in a championship he loves?”
With Red Bull the only top four team realistically with a need for a new driver for 2026, reports began to emerge of communication between Palou’s management and Milton Keynes. Yet Alex’s team boss Chip Ganassi denied any such contact had been made from Red Bull. “No one has called us. I called Alex and he hasn’t spoken to anyone either, not even his manager,” the team owner added.
Marko talks up Hadjar, not Lawson
Marko too has addressed the reports of the Indycar star, speaking to Kleine Zeitung he said that he’s also happy with his drivers. ”Isack Hadjar has positively surprised and Arvid Lindblad is all according to plan. He is fully on schedule, is already fully integrated into the programme this year and gets more opportunities with us this year.”
In Zandvoort the matter was again put to the Red Bull advisor given the speculation over Red Bull’s interest in Palou. Marko was adamant stating: “We never had a discussion with him. No, we have our drivers. He’s not on our radar.”
So, once again, Red Bull has turned the second seat into Formula One’s version of a revolving bar stool: spin it fast enough and you never know who you’ll see sitting there next. Mekies insists there is “no hurry,” but history suggests that what Red Bull claim is a calm evaluation process can quickly become a ruthless game of musical chairs once Verstappen gets restless or the stopwatch turns against someone.
For Tsunoda, every session is now both a race and a survival test. For Lawson, it is once again another long audition, a driver endlessly framed as “progressing nicely” but never quite enough to be handed the Red Bull keys once again. And then there is Hadjar, the newest golden child, already being hyped as the saviour of Red Bull’s driver pipeline before he has even strapped into the senior car. The Red Bull junior programme has produced in 20 years the odd superstar, yes, but also more ex-drivers than you can count on both hands.
Norris v Piastri: McLaren’s title fight echoes Hamilton v Rosberg
The tragedy of previous team mate battles for F1’s crown – Just nine times in seventy five years, has the fight for the drivers’ title come down to two team mates exclusively and it has not ended well more than once. McLaren are enjoying an uber dominant season, now 299 points ahead of their nearest rival Ferrari.
And it is their drivers who will fight to out for F1 immortality, since Max Verstappen conceded the 97 points deficit he faces to championship leader Oscar Piastri. Last season with thirteen rounds to go and not just ten as it is now, Lando Norris was 80 points behind Max Verstappen.
Yet despite the world champion failing to win on ten consecutive race weekends, just two wins in Qatar and Brazil at the end of the ayer was enough to fight the challenge from Lando off. The McLaren driver finished a distant sixty six points behind the Red Bull driver. Verstappen’s challenge from hereon this year would be even greater…. READ MORE
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
