Red Bull just witnessed something alarming in Yuki Tsunoda’s British Grand Prix telemetry compared to Arvid Lindblad

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Arvid Lindblad was handed his first appearance at a Formula 1 weekend as he took over from Yuki Tsunoda during FP1 at the British Grand Prix.

The Red Bull junior is being prepared extensively behind the scenes as the Milton Keynes outfit see him as their next rising star. Lindblad was recently given special exemption for an FIA superlicence, having achieved the 40-point threshold back in January.

Lindblad has displayed a ‘perfect’ attitude during private testing, racking up significant mileage for junior team Racing Bulls in TPC outings. The Brit is being lined up for a possible move to F1.

The 17-year-old made history in F2 this season by becoming the category’s youngest winner. Sitting sixth in the standings ahead of the British Grand Prix, he is determined to have a successful season as Red Bull weigh up their options for 2026.

Helmut Marko says Lindblad is being prepared for a ‘nightmare’ scenario if Max Verstappen receives a race suspension – he currently has nine penalty points as two expired following the Austrian GP. He edged one step closer to F1 as he took part in FP1 at Silverstone.

Arvid Lindblad was ‘bang on’ the pace of Yuki Tsunoda for Red Bull at the British Grand Prix

Lindblad finished the session in P14 with a time of 1.27.958. While his display was not as impressive as F2 rival Alex Dunne in Austria, who was a ridiculous fourth for McLaren, he was half a second behind Max Verstappen, who could only manage P10.

Tsunoda got back into the RB21 in FP2 and went P15 in the session. The Japanese driver was six tenths off the pace of Verstappen, which was alarmingly a bigger gap than Lindblad managed in the earlier session.

In a report from The Race, the Brit was ‘marginally better position and gap-wise’ than Tsunoda. When taking into account that the track evolution made the cars ‘a second quicker’ in the afternoon, Lindblad was ‘bang on’ the Japanese driver’s pace.

It is worth noting that directly comparing the two sessions and drivers is difficult, considering different track conditions and run plans. However, Red Bull will no doubt be concerned as their second driver was matched by their F2 junior.

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

Yuki Tsunoda looks set to leave F1 in 2026 as Arvid Lindblad is determined to join the grid

Tsunoda will be desperate to find performance at Silverstone as he finds himself on a torrid run of form. The 25-year-old has only scored seven points since he replaced Liam Lawson at Red Bull at the Japanese GP.

The Japanese driver looks set to lose his seat come the end of the year, but it could even be worse for him. Tsunoda has ‘almost 0% chance’ of staying in F1 in 2026; he is now fighting for his future in the sport.

Lindblad ‘truly believes’ he will be joining Racing Bulls in 2026, as he is determined to find his way on the grid next season for the new technical regulations.

Lindblad does not want to be the ‘next Verstappen’, as he is keen to make his own name in F1. He is on the right track to doing so, but he must keep the momentum going to confirm his seat.