Yuki Tsunoda leaves fans devastated after hints he has given up on F1 dream

Yuki Tsunoda, Spanish GP, Red Bull, 2025 — Photo: © IMAGO

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Yuki Tsunoda leaves fans devastated after hints he has given up on F1 dream

Tsunoda won't be driving for Red Bull this year

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Wednesday 14 January 2026 22:42

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Remember being 14 years old and communicating entirely though MySpace status updates? Vague posting and moving someone out of your Top Eight? Well, buckle up.

A whole lot of F1 fans online are very sad today, because Yuki Tsunoda's Instagram bio no longer says 'F1 driver'.

The well-liked Japanese star was promoted to Red Bull's senior team after just two races, finally being thrown in at the deep end and, unfortunately, just sort of thrashing around wishing he still had his water wings.

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While team-mate Max Verstappen took the title race down to the last race of the season, Tsunoda finished the year 17th in the drivers' standings, behind the Racing Bulls pair of Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar.

Yuki Tsunoda no longer an F1 driver

Predictably, the 25-year-old was dropped from the Red Bull seat for the 2026 season in favour of Hadjar, and will spend the year as the team's reserve/test driver.

The change to his Instagram bio was spotted by a number of fans, who shared screenshots on Twitter and watched the replies from devastated fans roll in.

On the other hand, this might be the most relatable thing a millionaire driver has ever done. Doing this in mid-January? It's the racing driver equivalent of forgetting/not bothering to update your LinkedIn job title until you've had a completely new position for months.

The good news for fans is that Tsunoda won't be completely out of the sport this year. Think of the example of Valtteri Bottas, who spent a year off the grid doing sidequests and popping up in Mercedes' garage as their reserve/test driver, before getting straight back into a race seat for 2026 with Cadillac. And he's a decade older!

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