Yuki Tsunoda blindsided by Red Bull F1 demotion

Yuki Tsunoda looking sad on a black and white background of the F1 grid — Photo: © IMAGO

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Yuki Tsunoda blindsided by Red Bull demotion

Tsunoda is out of a seat for 2026.

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Tuesday 30 December 2025 10:51 Updated: 15:06

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Yuki Tsunoda has admitted that he was somewhat blindsided by Red Bull's decision to demote him for the 2026 F1 season.

The Japanese racer struggled ever since he was plucked from Racing Bulls earlier in the year to race against Max Verstappen at the main outfit.

Having started the 2025 campaign at the much more forgiving junior team, Tsunoda was called upon to replace Liam Lawson, who was deemed to not be a good fit for the main squad after just two race weekends.

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Instead it was Tsunoda who had to face the music for the rest of the season, coming up against frequent scrutiny over his inability to help Verstappen to keep Red Bull in the fight for the constructors' championship.

As rumours continued to swirl over his future, it was confirmed ahead of the 2025 season finale that Tsunoda would not be handed a full-time seat for next year.

The 25-year-old was demoted to test and reserve driver whilst Lawson was allowed to keep his seat at Racing Bulls.

Tsunoda: 'The news was different from what I’d heard'

Taking Tsunoda's seat at Red Bull is 2025 rookie Isack Hadjar, who showed Tsunoda up even more when he managed to join Verstappen on the podium at the Dutch GP.

In contrast, Tsunoda has never secured a top-three finish in a grand prix throughout his five seasons in the sport.

Despite his lack of impressive results, Tsunoda has now revealed that the demotion from Red Bull took him by surprise.

Reflecting on how he found out about his sacking, Tsunoda reportedly told DAZN Japan: "I was told after the race in Qatar, but honestly, it didn’t feel real at first."

"I had prepared myself for that possibility, but the news was different from what I’d heard before, so it took me by surprise.

"I heard that the decision might have been changed just before my briefing."

Despite the mixed messaging slightly blindsiding Tsunoda, he has not given up all hope entirely.

"There must be a lot of reasons behind it. But when they told me I don’t have a permanent seat next year, it wasn’t like the world collapsed," he added.

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