Red Bull’s ‘change of mindset’ could be the biggest boost yet for Yuki Tsunoda’s F1 future

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Yuki Tsunoda knows he’s a man under pressure, and the Italian Grand Prix is likely to be another event where he’s under the microscope.

Red Bull Racing are fighting a losing battle in the constructors’ championship this season, despite Max Verstappen’s best efforts.

The Dutchman has nicked two wins off McLaren this season at Suzuka and Imola, and finished on the podium a further four times.

However, he’s had very little support from the other side of the garage, with first Liam Lawson, and then Yuki Tsunoda, failing to get to grips with the RB21.

Lawson and Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar sit comfortably ahead of Tsunoda in the drivers’ championship, with the Japanese driver currently on course for his worst result in five seasons on the grid.

Only Alpine duo Jack Doohan and Franco Colapinto, both on zero points, are worse off than Tsunoda, who is yet to reach double figures since his promotion 13 races ago.

Hadjar has been heavily linked with replacing Tsunoda for the 2026 Formula 1 season as a result of his difficulties this year.

However, Red Bull’s ideal 2026 line-up is still Verstappen and Tsunoda, and journalist Nate Saunders has noted a ‘change of mindset’ behind the scenes within the team that could give the Japanese driver’s hopes of staying on the grid a much-needed boost.

READ MORE: Best moments of Yuki Tsunoda’s F1 career including first points, greatest Grand Prix results and funniest team radio outbursts

Red Bull’s ‘change of mindset’ could see Yuki Tsunoda retain his F1 seat for 2026

Saunders was speaking on the Unlapped Podcast about Red Bull’s driver decisions and explained: “Marko very rarely speaks as glowingly about the young drivers as he did on Sunday about Hadjar.

“So, I think there is a real feeling that they have something quite special with Hadjar, and Lindblad, I think they do also feel that.

“There’s also a telling thing in Red Bull, they know better than anyone that they’ve messed up the driver pipeline that they had for a long time now.

“And I think that for Marko as well, especially as he approaches the end of his career, I think there’s a big desire on his side to be like, let’s make the Red Bull driver program mean what it used to mean again.

“Part of doing that is probably taking the foot off the gas a little bit and saying, right, we’re going to give this guy time at the top team, and we’ve got Lindblad.

“Let’s not forget here, they may well be losing Max again in a year’s time from now. So I think they’re also wary of that fact.

“And it’s like, let’s not burn through all of these young guys, because if Max does have another exit clause and he can trigger that 12 months down the line from now, you don’t want to have already burned through Hadjar because you’re like, well, now we need to find someone to go with Hadjar as well.

“So, I think there is a change of mindset in the background.”

READ MORE: The five youngest drivers ever to race for Red Bull in Formula 1 including forgotten 49-race star

Yuki Tsunoda’s ‘carrying confidence’ into the Italian Grand Prix after scoring points at Zandvoort

Tsunoda ended a seven-race streak without scoring a point at Zandvoort, coming home in ninth after a tricky weekend.

His progress was hampered by a throttle mapping issue after his last pit stop; otherwise, he could have been looking at a top-six finish.

However, the 25-year-old is looking forward to returning to Monza, where he’s arguably had his worst luck in Formula 1.

Tsunoda finished 14th in 2022, but retired from last year’s race and failed to start on his other two visits to the Italian Grand Prix.

He explained: “Scoring points in Zandvoort last weekend was a real step in the right direction, and it felt great to be back in the mix.

“I’m carrying that confidence into Monza, which definitely feels like a home race for me.

“Monza is one of the classic circuits on the calendar, and it’s one every driver looks forward to.

“We’ve been making progress race by race, and we’ll keep pushing to improve the car and our performance. We hope to say goodbye to the European season in a positive way.”