Will Buxton shares what he would ‘love and hate’ about IndyCar star Alex Palou signing for Red Bull

Follow us on Google Discover

Will Buxton is in the privileged position of being an expert in IndyCar and Formula 1.

For years, Will Buxton covered Formula 1 and became one of the most recognisable faces of Drive to Survive.

Now, Buxton heads up coverage of IndyCar, which has been dominated by one driver over the past five years.

For the fourth time in five years, Alex Palou secured the IndyCar championship this season.

The season has one race remaining, but Palou has already opened up a 165-point lead over his nearest rival Pato O’Ward.

It’s a level of domination that Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen can certainly relate to.

Verstappen is also a four-time champion, and like Palou, he also looks likely to miss out on winning five titles in the last five years.

However, team principal Laurent Mekies knows he has a bigger conundrum to solve on the other side of the garage.

Yuki Tsunoda is entering the last year of his contract, and Red Bull are considering whether to continue with him.

One of the options Red Bull are thinking about is Palou, and Buxton has shared what he would ‘love and hate’ about the proposed move.

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

Will Buxton gives his verdict on Red Bull’s 2026 F1 interest in Alex Palou

Reflecting on the news that Palou has been talked about as an option by Red Bull, Buxton said: “Would love and hate this in equal measure.

“Would love it for him and because I think he’s one of the very best racers in open wheel right now and would surprise a lot of people, showing the world just how high the level is in Indycar.

“Would hate it because that second Red Bull seat has a hex on it, one which even Palou might struggle to overcome.

“And also because not only do I want to see the Indycar field take the fight to him in 2026 and challenge the champion, but I want to see just how many titles he could achieve in Indycar, given how young he is and how much scope there still is for him to get even better.”

READ MORE: People in the paddock fear 101-point driver could be ‘out of Formula 1 altogether’ before 2026

Can Yuki Tsunoda still save his Red Bull seat ahead of the 2026 F1 season?

Yuki Tsunoda would have known he was under pressure before the summer break, but the links to Palou would have only upped the intensity in the Red Bull garage heading into the Dutch Grand Prix.

The Japanese driver has only scored seven points since his promotion from Racing Bulls, and he’s slipped down to 18th in the drivers’ championship in the process.

Mekies has told Tsunoda what he must do to save his Red Bull seat, but knowing what he needs to do and actually doing it are two very different things.

He closed the gap to Verstappen at the Hungarian Grand Prix in qualifying, but that was both a blessing and a curse, with the Hungaroring representing one of the Dutchman’s worst one-lap performances in recent memory.

Zandvoort is Verstappen’s home race, and if Tsunoda can get close to matching his teammate in front of his fans, then that might stave off Red Bull’s pursuit of alternative targets.

Otherwise, Red Bull might up the intensity on trying to sign Palou, or another option already in the Formula 1 paddock.