Max Verstappen F1 tactic BLOCKED better result for Red Bull team-mate Yuki Tsunoda

Max Verstappen, Laurent Mekies, Yuki Tsunoda, 2025, generic — Photo: © IMAGO

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Verstappen tactic BLOCKED better result for Tsunoda

Yuki Tsunoda could have improved on his sixth-place result

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 27 September 2025 08:57 Updated: 14:09

Red Bull F1 star Yuki Tsunoda suggested that he could have finished higher up the grid at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but that he was protecting team-mate Max Verstappen.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit enjoyed their best weekend since the 2024 Miami GP points-wise, with Verstappen taking a stunning victory and Tsunoda finishing in sixth.

For Tsunoda, it was his best finishing position as a Red Bull driver, and it has made his record since joining the team look a little better, now having collected 17 points from 15 grand prix weekends.

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Verstappen, meanwhile, kept his faint hopes of a record-equalling fifth consecutive title alive with his fourth race win of the season, narrowing the gap to championship leader Oscar Piastri down to 69 points.

Piastri crashed out while the other championship protagonist Lando Norris could only finish down in seventh, behind Tsunoda.

Now, Tsunoda has suggested that he didn't go for an overtake on Liam Lawson in fifth just in case it allowed Norris to take advantage and gain some positions, which would have harmed Verstappen's bid for the drivers' title.

"I enjoyed the first stint, for sure," Tsunoda told F1 media after the race. "The second stint was also very hard for me, especially with McLaren behind and thinking about [the] championship, both teams’ and drivers’ championship for Max.

"There were a lot of opportunities I could probably go inside and attack Liam, but there is a lot more risk that maybe McLaren will overtake both of us or [pass Liam], which he will step up one more.

"I think as a Red Bull you don’t want to have that, and I think I did the right decision not challenging him. But at the same time, I didn’t have enough pace to overtake comfortably."

Will Tsunoda be racing at Red Bull in 2026?

25-year-old Tsunoda's contract within the Red Bull family is up at the end of this season, and it is unclear whether the team will opt to keep him on for 2026.

Results would suggest that they will not, with the Japanese racer currently down in 17th in the championship while his team-mate is challenging for the title.

However, Laurent Mekies has recently spoken about Tsunoda's dedication during his summer break, cancelling a holiday in order to try and work on the RB21 and ensure that he and Red Bull can have a stronger end to the season.

It seems to have worked so far, with the team looking more like the outfit that dominated the sport in 2022 and 2023, and if Tsunoda can claim more regular top-six finishes in the final seven race weekends of the season, then he could well be given another year in the seat.

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