David Croft says Red Bull won’t be impressed by what Yuki Tsunoda just did in Sergio Perez battle

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Yuki Tsunoda is trying to convince Red Bull to give him a chance for 2025 at Sergio Perez’s expense. All the talk is about Liam Lawson, but that may only fire up the Japanese driver.

Tsunoda will feel he’s already done enough to merit a promotion. He outqualified Daniel Ricciardo 12-6 and outscored him 22-12 in the 18 races before the Australian lost his drive.

Christian Horner has privately said Tsunoda has ‘no chance’ of partnering Max Verstappen. While he’s delivered a series of impressive results in 2024, there are some concerns about his fortitude.

Indeed, Horner doesn’t think Tsunoda could ‘survive’ alongside Verstappen. The Dutchman has rather brutally beaten not only Perez but also Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly, sending them into a spiral at times.

However, Red Bull could ‘finally’ give Tsunoda a chance if he beats Lawson at each of the next six races. While Horner may still be opposed, Helmut Marko is a key advocate.

Marko says Tsunoda is a candidate for 2025. The failure of Ricciardo has weakened Horner’s position when it comes to driver decisions.

Yuki Tsunoda made key mistake in battle with Sergio Perez

Tsunoda had a chance to make a statement during the Sprint at the US Grand Prix on Saturday. He did battle with Perez on lap 12 and 13.

The RB driver was the faster of the two on Friday, commendably reaching SQ3 and taking ninth on the grid. Perez, meanwhile, ended up a disappointing 11th.

Predictably, they met on track in the race itself, and after Perez fought his way ahead, Tsunoda tried to come back at him into turn one with the aid of DRS. The 24-year-old took the outside line on the ascent to improve his traction on exit, but he locked up in doing so.

Speaking live on Sky Sports F1, commentator David Croft noted that it was a missed opportunity. He felt he let Perez off the hook.

“Yuki Tsunoda wants to prove to Red Bull that he’s good enough to get a seat at the big team,” Croft said. “And he locks up into turn one, which is not going to be that impressive because it gives Sergio Perez just a little bit of a let-off, when it seemed to all eternity as if Tsunoda was going to get past there again.”

What happened when Yuki Tsunoda tried to leave RB

Perez consolidated his grip on ninth place, which was eventually where he finished. He wasn’t able to catch up to the two Haas cars and score a point.

Tsunoda finished 11th after an ill-tempered battle with Piastri, while Lawson was only 16th. In truth, none of three drivers furthered their case.

According to one journalist, Tsunoda tried to leave RB before 2024. However, Red Bull and Honda blocked his exit.

He might have sensed that his prospects were limited amid Horner’s doubts. Sauber showed interest in Tsunoda but they’re now looking elsewhere.