Eddie Jordan ‘can promise you’ 23-y/o F1 driver is not on the grid for his skill

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Eddie Jordan ‘can promise you’ that Yuki Tsunoda is not a Formula 1 driver because of the Visa Cash App RB star’s talents but rather only so Red Bull can keep Honda happy.

The 23-year-old will contest his fourth season with the Faenza outfit this year after securing another 12-month contract. Tsunoda has only ever driven on single-year deals since he first broke into Formula 1. But Red Bull have seen enough to retain the Japanese gem each year.

Tsunoda will now help the Faenza outfit beside teammate Daniel Ricciardo as they transition from AlphaTauri to Visa Cash App RB in 2024. The parent Red Bull brand decided to find title sponsorship for the junior team – previously named Toro Rosso – for the first time this year.

Visa Cash App RB’s Yuki Tsunoda is a product of Honda and Red Bull

But backing from Honda helped to launch Tsunoda’s racing career having joined their Honda Formula Dream project in 2016. The Kanagawa native only moved to Europe in 2019 to race in Formula 3, at which point Tsunoda also joined Red Bull’s driver development programme.

Tsunoda would then enjoy a quick rise through the categories with P9 in the 2019 Formula 3 championship preceding his third-place finish in the 2020 Formula 2 season. A graduation to F1 then beckoned as Red Bull switched Daniil Kvyat out for the Honda protégé at AlphaTauri.

AlphaTauri saw Red Bull’s decision to give Tsunoda a Formula 1 drive at their feeder team in 2021 return 32 points from 22 rounds. His rookie season remains the Japanese talent’s best campaign in F1 to date. He posted just 12 points in the 2022 term and achieved 17 last year.

Eddie Jordan is certain Yuki Tsunoda is not in Formula 1 for his skill

Tsunoda achieved his 17 points in Visa Cash App RB’s final year as AlphaTauri with three P10 results, one P9 finish and two P8 results through the 22 Grand Prix, plus a P6 finish in one of the six Sprint events. He recorded seven points-paying finishes as a rookie and four in 2022.

But former F1 team owner Jordan does not think Red Bull kept Tsunoda at Visa Cash App RB for his results but to keep power unit supplier Honda happy. Red Bull have run the Japanese brand’s engines since 2019 after Honda powered Toro Rosso through the 2018 F1 campaign.

Jordan said on the Formula for Success podcast: “Let’s be clear, Tsunoda is in the team he’s in because Toro Rosso – or call them what you want – [but] Red Bull, as a family, they need to keep Honda happy. And that is a Honda request. I can promise you that’s the way it is.”

Honda announced the automotive giant’s withdrawal as a Formula 1 power unit supplier in 2021. But the Japanese brand agreed to continue supplying Red Bull through 2025 and the end of F1’s current engine regulations. Yet Honda made a shock U-turn on leaving in 2023.

Now, question marks surround Tsunoda’s future at Visa Cash App RB with Honda agreeing a works engine partnership with Aston Martin for 2026 onwards. While Red Bull established their own power unit division and secured a partnership with Ford for the 2026 regulations.