Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo are set to continue as team-mates for the 2024 F1 season. According to the BBC’s Andrew Benson, no matter what Yuki Tsunoda does, he can’t secure a seat at Red Bull as long as Daniel Ricciardo has Christian Horner’s ‘protection.’
Red Bull, despite their denials, are rumored to be facing internal strife after an investigation in February into team boss Christian Horner’s behavior. Although the charges against Horner were dismissed, this sparked a power struggle between him and Helmut Marko.
A second brief investigation into Marko’s involvement led nowhere. However, there’s still a lingering tension within the team. And it seems Yuki Tsunoda might be an innocent victim in this struggle. Despite being the junior team’s standout driver in the first quarter of the season, outqualifying Ricciardo and outscoring him by 19 points to 5, Tsunoda faces an uphill battle.
Under Horner’s protection, Ricciardo is safe from being replaced by reserve driver Liam Lawson. Meanwhile, Marko, who reportedly favors a Tsunoda-Lawson pairing, has seen his influence wane amid the power struggle.
Benson revealed in a Q&A, ‘The impression from the outside is that there is absolutely nothing Tsunoda can do to be considered for a seat at Red Bull – the bosses simply do not rate him highly enough.’ He further added, ‘At the moment, though, Ricciardo is protected by team principal Christian Horner, sources say, and is safe for now from being replaced by reserve Liam Lawson.’
This ongoing internal ‘civil war’ has forced Tsunoda to explore opportunities outside Red Bull, even though he owes his F1 seat to Honda, their engine partner. Tsunoda recently mentioned looking at options like Williams, Haas, and Alpine. However, he can’t get a seat at Aston Martin, Honda’s works team from 2026, due to Fernando Alonso’s new contract and Lance Stroll’s firm position in the team.
For now, Ricciardo’s future at Red Bull looks secure under Horner’s leadership. However, as driver line-ups for 2025 begin to take shape, Marko’s desire for a Lawson and Ricciardo pairing could still become a reality if the power dynamics shift again.
Yuki Tsunoda finds himself in a challenging position within Red Bull, primarily due to the ongoing power struggle between Christian Horner and Helmut Marko. With Ricciardo firmly under Horner’s wing, Tsunoda must look elsewhere for his F1 future. As the 2025 season approaches, it remains to be seen how the internal politics at Red Bull will affect their driver line-up.
Source: Planetf1
