Tsunoda says Red Bull seat left him exhausted after struggling with the car
Yuki Tsunoda said he did everything he could to understand Red Bull’s car but still could not fully make sense of it by the end of 2025. Reports also placed his experience in the context of Red Bull’s second seat, where several drivers have struggled alongside Max Verstappen and some said it affected their mental health.
Tsunoda said he could not have tried any harder to understand Red Bull’s car, but by the end of 2025 he still could not fully fathom it. He also said the stint left him exhausted.
The reports linked his experience to a longer pattern at Red Bull’s second seat in the pre-2026 Formula 1 era. Pierre Gasly, Alexander Albon, Sergio Perez and Liam Lawson were all cited as drivers who struggled to match team-mate Max Verstappen’s performance, despite different lengths of time in the role.
According to Motorsport.com, those difficulties sometimes took a toll on drivers’ mental health. Perez, for example, spent four years alongside Verstappen.
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