Yuki Tsunoda has identified attempting to replicate Max Verstappen’s car setup as his single biggest mistake during a difficult 2025 season at Red Bull, admitting the decision compounded his struggles rather than closing the performance gap to his four-time world champion teammate.
Speaking on the official Formula 1 podcast Beyond the Grid, Tsunoda said he initially resisted changing his driving style — a point of personal pride — but ultimately made the error of chasing Verstappen’s setup philosophy instead. “What I think now is the biggest mistake in last year was to try to replicate the set-up what he’s doing,” Tsunoda said.
Tsunoda scored points just seven times across the 21 Grands Prix he contested with Red Bull, in a car Verstappen drove to second in the Drivers’ Championship. The performance gap was most visible late in the season, when Verstappen won five of the final eight races while Tsunoda’s best results in that same stretch were a sixth, seventh, and 10th place finish.
Despite the difficult campaign, Tsunoda said he carries little regret. “I fought really hard. I fought more than ever in that 2025 year, more than ever. And even if I look back now, I don’t have much regret. I gave everything and the outcome is something I didn’t like, obviously, but honestly, I just gave everything,” he said.
At the end of 2025, Tsunoda lost his Red Bull race seat to Isack Hadjar, who was promoted from Racing Bulls. Tsunoda moved into a reserve driver role for the 2026 season, but has since made three race appearances for Racing Bulls after Hadjar sustained an injury, with Liam Lawson’s departure creating the opening.
His return has drawn positive attention. At Zandvoort, competing under the Sprint format with only a single practice session in an unfamiliar 2026-specification car, Tsunoda finished 11th — one place ahead of his teammate. He then scored a championship point for Racing Bulls with a 10th-place finish at Monza.
“The feeling I had, crossing the line, finishing P10, is definitely a bit more special P10 than certainly last three years of my career,” Tsunoda said. “Felt like really similar feeling towards first time I scored points in AlphaTauri [in my] first year.”
With Racing Bulls fifth in the Constructors’ Championship, Tsunoda’s point at Monza contributed directly to the team’s battle against Alpine. Whether he receives a fourth race outing in 2026 remains unconfirmed. His stated priority is securing a full-time seat for 2027. “My primary focus is F1. I’m trying to be back. That’s my target,” he said.