Helmut Marko delivers update on Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull future after troubling US Grand Prix qualifying

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Max Verstappen will start the United States Grand Prix on pole position, but his Red Bull teammate, Yuki Tsunoda, will once again have work to do during Sunday’s race.

Yuki Tsunoda has had two nightmare qualifying sessions at the United States Grand Prix.

Tsunoda was caught up in the gaggle of drivers who failed to start their flying laps at the end of SQ1 on Friday, and ended up starting 18th.

However, the Japanese driver was the biggest beneficiary of the chaos going into the first corner of the Sprint Race, and made up 11 positions to finish seventh and score two important points.

Tsunoda didn’t expect scoring points to be so difficult after joining Red Bull, and he’ll have his work cut out to secure a decent haul again on Sunday.

The Japanese driver narrowly avoided another Q1 exit before failing to progress into the top 10 shootout.

Martin Brundle was baffled by Tsunoda’s anger at Liam Lawson, whom he blamed alongside Pierre Gasly for ruining his qualifying.

Jolyon Palmer thinks anger is growing between Tsunoda and Lawson, although the New Zealander didn’t understand why his former teammate was so angry.

Tsunoda’s Red Bull contract expires at the end of the season, and right now, he’s received no assurances from team principal Laurent Mekies that he’ll be retained.

Advisor Helmut Marko provided an update on when Red Bull will make a decision, and time is running out for the 25-year-old to impress.

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Yuki Tsunoda’s life outside F1 from height to parents

Helmut Marko says Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull future will be decided after the Mexico City Grand Prix

Marko was asked on Sky Sports F1 (18/10 11:08 pm) whether Tsunoda is doing enough to keep his Red Bull seat for 2026.

He answered, with a smile on his face: “We said we would make a decision after Mexico.

“So, please, let us have our effects [discussions], and when we have a decision, we’ll let you know.”

Marko also spoke about Verstappen and why he’s taken such an obvious step forward since the summer break.

He explained: “It’s a different approach from the engineering side, [they are] working very well together.

“They ask the driver what they want, and we have to say, we developed the car. We had some problems in the Sprint, which we cured, and the car was even so, we were looking at the behaviour during the race.

“So, we can go with the one-stop strategy, and in the end, it’s Max who delivers; you can rely on that.

“He has a very good technical understanding, but it’s more that it does how he would like to have the car.

“He has confidence. Before, at some of the races, it was a very, very small margin where the car was working, and he didn’t have the confidence.

“And now, the car is to his liking and he’s got confidence, and, of course, he delivers with fantastic lap times.”

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Why United States Grand Prix qualifying wasn’t a complete disaster for Yuki Tsunoda’s F1 future

There are only four seats left to be decided ahead of the upcoming 2026 Formula 1 season.

Franco Colapinto stands a good chance of being retained by Alpine, with the other three seats all within the Red Bull group.

Isack Hadjar is the frontrunner to be Verstappen’s teammate next year, with Tsunoda and Lawson battling Arvid Lindblad for the two Racing Bulls seats.

However, Hadjar’s big crash in Q1 means he’ll start from the back row of the race, and he was absolutely furious after the incident, bashing the steering wheel of his car.

Hadjar will know that if he’s helping Red Bull compete for the constructors’ championship next year, he can’t afford to make mistakes like that.

At the moment, Hadjar appears to be in a head-to-head battle with a driver who seems to be losing more and more confidence with each passing race.