Ted Kravitz tells Red Bull why it ‘doesn’t make sense’ to drop Yuki Tsunoda despite Austrian Grand Prix woes

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Yuki Tsunoda has had a torrid time since he was promoted from Racing Bulls to Red Bull Racing this season.

In the nine Grand Prix weekends that Yuki Tsunoda has taken part in since joining Red Bull, he’s scored just seven points.

Only the drivers in the second Alpine seat, Gabriel Bortoleto and Oliver Bearman, have scored fewer points than the Japanese driver this year.

Christian Horner won’t be happy that Liam Lawson has now leapfrogged Tsunoda after his career-best performance at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The New Zealander outqualified Max Verstappen and finished sixth, while Tsunoda came home in last place.

Tsunoda is expected to lose his Red Bull seat at the end of the season; however, there will be calls from some Red Bull fans for the 25-year-old to be moved on before then.

David Coulthard thinks Tsunoda is under no pressure, such is the predicament he finds himself in.

However, Ted Kravitz believes that Tsunoda can’t be dropped by Horner now, as he’s uncovered a far greater problem that Red Bull seem incapable of solving.

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

Ted Kravitz tells Red Bull that dropping Yuki Tsunoda ‘doesn’t make sense’

Kravitz was reporting on the Austrian Grand Prix from the pit lane for Sky Sports F1 (29/6 3:31 pm) and explained: “So, what you’re saying on the Red Bull Racing thing is, with Liam Lawson going really well in P6, Isack Hadjar just dropping out of the points in P11, Yuki was fine in the RB.

“So, it’s not the drivers, is it? It’s the car. It’s not the drivers, so it doesn’t make sense to replace Yuki because it’s not the drivers; it’s the car.

“You’ve got to fix [this], you’ve got to make a driveable car, that’s definitive, I think you can say that now.”

After the race on Ted’s Notebook, Kravitz expanded on his point and explained: “So, this second Red Bull car is near undrivable.

“It’s probably the same, it’s probably identical, in fact, I would imagine it is identical to the other Red Bull, but no one can drive it.

“So, it’s not Yuki Tsunoda’s fault, it wasn’t Liam Lawson’s fault, it wasn’t Sergio Perez’s fault, it wasn’t Daniel Ricciardo’s fault, it’s the car!

“This car, it’s set up and built and the way it is, it’s only drivable by one person.

“Now, that’s OK, if that one person is Max Verstappen, and he’s so good he’s going to try and get a fifth world championship in a row.

“But, if Max Verstappen isn’t driving your car because he goes out at the beginning or because he’s not in the team anymore, which a lot has been spoken about that, then what are you left with?

“There’s no point binning off Yuki Tsunoda now because it’s not his fault.”

READ MORE: All you need to know about Red Bull Racing from engine to Ford links

Yuki Tsunoda’s struggles prove Max Verstappen was right when making his Liam Lawson assessment

With half a season remaining, it’s hard to see Red Bull suddenly making a breakthrough that will solve Tsunoda’s problems, especially with a new set of regulations on the horizon.

It means Red Bull have a crucial decision to make about their 2026 F1 car and whether they continue to prioritise Verstappen’s needs or if they try to build a more balanced car.

Verstappen was unhappy when Red Bull dropped Lawson because he identified that the problem was the car and not the driver.

Tsunoda has shown how talented he is during his four seasons with Racing Bulls, but the RB21 is proving impossible to handle.

Not only that, but it’s left the Japanese driver completely bereft of confidence and with races coming thick and fast, Red Bull need to find a way to make Tsunoda competitive again.