Tsunoda sets bold target for Red Bull debut: ‘I want a podium!’

Yuki Tsunoda is gearing up for his grand debut with Red Bull Racing at his home Grand Prix in Suzuka next week, and boldly targeting a podium finish in his first race with the senior team.

The 24-year-old Japanese driver, promoted from Racing Bulls following a straight forward swap Liam Lawson, spoke publicly for the first time since the shock switch at a Honda event in Tokyo.

With the 2025 season marking the final year of Red Bull and Honda’s partnership, Tsunoda sees his unexpected call-up as destiny.

"To be honest, I never expected to be racing for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix," said the 24-year-old, quoted by Motorsport.com.

“This is the final year of Red Bull and Honda’s partnership, so getting to race in Suzuka as a Red Bull Racing driver feels like fate. Everything has fallen into place in just the right way for me to be standing here today.”

Aiming High at Suzuka

Despite the pressure of stepping into Red Bull’s high-stakes environment, Tsunoda isn’t tempering his ambitions.

“Of course, I was happy about joining Red Bull, but when I thought about it carefully, the idea of suddenly racing for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix felt so unreal,” he admitted.

“I don’t want to raise expectations too much, but for this Japanese Grand Prix, I want to finish on the podium. That said, I know it won’t be easy right from the start.”

His goal reflects a blend of confidence and realism as he prepares to tackle the RB21 for the first time on track. But Tsunoda’s approach is methodical yet optimistic.

“My priority is to first understand the car, how it behaves compared to the VCARB. If I can naturally enjoy driving it as I get familiar with it in FP1, then the results will follow. And if that leads to a podium finish, that would be incredible,” he explained.

With no prior experience in the RB21, Suzuka could be a baptism by fire, but Tsunoda is undeterred.

Embracing the Pressure

The Red Bull seat has a reputation for breaking drivers, yet Tsunoda welcomes the challenge.

“When I first got the call, I thought: 'Wow, this is going to be interesting,'” he said. “More than anything, I’m excited about the challenge ahead.

“There aren’t many moments in life where you face this kind of extreme pressure and an opportunity as big as this, so I can only imagine that it’s going to be an incredibly thrilling race.”

©RedBull

His enthusiasm shines through despite a whirlwind of preparations.

“At first, I was too busy to even take the time to fully appreciate the excitement. I had to jump straight into the simulator, do seat fittings, and take care of a lot of other preparations,” he added.

“Of course, getting promoted to Red Bull is an amazing opportunity, but before anything else, I wanted to talk to my engineers and the people who had supported me.

“So, despite all the emotions, I actually felt quite calm,” he reflected.

Recalling an earlier seat fitting as a reserve driver, he laughed, “Since I was a reserve driver this year, I had already done a seat fitting before. But back then, I remember thinking: 'Why am I even doing this? I’m not going to be racing anyway.’”

Simulator Insights and Setup Goals

Tsunoda’s simulator sessions have bolstered his confidence.

“I spent about two days in the simulator. From that experience, I didn’t find the car to be that challenging to drive,” he said.

“I definitely got the impression that the front-end is very responsive, as people often say. But if you ask whether it felt tricky to handle, I wouldn’t say it gave me a particularly strange feeling, at least in the simulator.”

He acknowledged last year’s “sales pitch” about the car suiting his style but now focuses on carving his own path.

“Of course, how I want to set up the car is probably different from Max. I want to develop my own car set-up, get a good understanding of it, and gradually get up to speed from FP1,” he noted.

Despite the pressure, Tsunoda remains in high spirits, even playfully responding to his mentor Ryo Michigami’s suggestion to keep expectations reasonable.

"Yes, please pile on the expectations and pressure!" he joked.

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