Yuki Tsunoda says Liam Lawson’s arrival at RB in place of Daniel Ricciardo will add “a bit more spice” to the intra-team battle, as both look to impress Red Bull for a future Formula 1 drive.
Lawson was announced as Ricciardo’s replacement following the Singapore Grand Prix for the rest of the season, although had been linked over the summer to Sergio Perez’s Red Bull seat before the primary team publicly backed the Mexican driver.
The suggestions that Lawson would leapfrog Tsunoda in the Red Bull pecking order came when the Kiwi was given time in the 2024 RB20, as the team considered life after Perez earlier this year.
Tsunoda had previously suggested that it would be “weird” if Lawson got the nod at Red Bull ahead of him, and now reckons that his return to RB – having raced as Ricciardo’s substitute at AlphaTauri last year – will raise the stakes between them.
The Japanese driver says that his priority is to beat Lawson, but crucially ensure the team secures sixth in the championship.
“I’m sure it will increase the kind of mentality of trying to not get beaten, but I guess that’s natural,” Tsunoda said.
“Maybe slightly a bit more spice on top of it than usual, but I think it was similar to last year as well. I know that those things are just floating around anyway.
Yuki Tsunoda, Visa Cash App RB F1 Team
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
“But at least on my side, I just focus what I have to do and obviously Liam will do a good job as well.
“I’ll make sure I’ll be ahead of him, and hopefully we can achieve P6 in the team championship. That’s the main goals.”
Tsunoda added that although Lawson will intensify the team-mate battle at RB, he already felt that he was in a shootout with Ricciardo to impress given the tentative future of Perez at Red Bull.
He reiterated that the best way to put himself in the shop window was to complete the job of securing sixth in the constructors’ standings, and that opportunities would naturally present themselves afterwards.
“I thought it’s kind of like this situation already with Daniel,” Tsunoda added. “Those sort of things, it’s always floating around anyway. To be honest, I got used to it and there’s no point to talk about it.
“I just have to keep proving myself as a result and how I work throughout the race weekends; keep focusing on what I have to do and those opportunities, it’s up to them and we’ll see how it goes.
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB20, Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team VCARB 01
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
“You have to be ahead all the time and that will be what depends on the next year’s contract and everything.
“But it’s always for me, it’s part of the whole season and we built already until this point, including Daniel, that P6 right now in the teams’ championship.
“If we weren’t able to achieve those things, I would get very frustrated at the end of the season.”
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