Drama breaks out in Baku: Yuki Tsunoda furious about rumors that he is being put at Red Bull Racing to make way for the new teammate of Max Verstappen and makes shocking statements about team boss
Baku, 20 September 2025-The voltages within Red Bull Racing reach a boiling point on the paddock of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix circuit. Yuki Tsunoda, the Japanese driver who was promoted to the team’s main force this season, burst out yesterday in an unprecedented outburst. Rumors that he will be put aside at the end of the season to make way for the young talent Isack Hadjar, brought him over the edge. In an explosive interview with the international press, Tsunoda made shocking statements about his team boss Laurent Mekies, whom he accused of lack of support and political games within the team.
The 25-year-old Tsunoda, who replaced Liam Lawson in April this year as a teammate of four-time world champion Max Verstappen, has had a difficult season. With only nine points from fourteen races, he is nineteenth in the championship, a stark contrast with Verstappens dominant 165 points. The RB21 car, which looks perfectly tailored to the driving style of the Dutchman, has driven Tsunoda to despair. “It’s like I’m driving in a strange car that was only built for one person,” he said earlier this month. But now, on the threshold of a crucial weekend in Baku, that resignation has disappeared. The rumors, fueled by a report in the German Auto Motor und Sport, suggest that Hadjar, the 20-year sensation at Racing Bulls who recently took his first stage in Zandvoort, took over Tsunoda’s chair in 2026.
“I am furious,” Brekest Tsunoda during the press conference, his fist banging on the table. “They put me here as a temporary solution, as if I am a spare tire that throws you away when he is worn out. And then those rumors about Hadjar – it’s a knife in my back. I have given everything for this team, and what do I get? Politics and lies.” His eyes sparked of frustration while he went deeper into his complaint with Mekies, the Italian who took over the team boss role in July after the controversial deposition of Christian Horner. “Mekies promised me support, said we would work on the car together. But it’s all show. He doesn’t listen to my feedback on the setup, ignores my data and drops me like a brick. It feels like betrayal. If this team really wants to win, he has to get his head out of the sand and stop with that back room deal.”
The eruption comes at a time when Red Bull Racing is struggling with internal division. After Horner’s departure, in the midst of rumors about Verstappen’s possible switch to Mercedes, the team tries to reposition itself for the major changes in regulations in 2026. Helmut Marko, the Austrian adviser with iron fist, has previously hinted on a Rehuffle. “We have to make choices that benefit the team,” he said after the Italian Grand Prix, where Tsunoda struggled to P13 while Verstappen triumphed. Hadjar, with his fresh 38 points at Racing Bulls, is seen as the ideal candidate: young, hungry and without luggage. But Tsunoda’s reaction throws oil on the fire. “Let them enjoy the rumors,” he sniffed. “I focus on racing. But if they dump me, I will say what I really think about how this team treats second drivers – as disposable items.”
Behind the scenes it buzzes with speculation. Franz Tost, Tsunoda’s former boss at Racing Bulls, recently criticized the work ethics of the Japanese. “Yuki is talented, but he has to work harder to compensate for his shortcomings,” said Tost in an interview with ServustV. Words that tsunoda only further light up. “Tost? He knows me from the past, but he knows nothing about what I am going through here. And Mekies? He plays games with my career while Verstappen gets everything he wants.” The parallels with previous teammates from Verstappen – from Sergio Pérez to Pierre Gasly – are striking. They all got stuck in the shadow of the champion, struggling with a car that seems to refuse for someone else.
Fans and analysts are divided. On social media, #Tsunodaout explodes versus #saveyuki, with memes about Red Bulls ‘Cursed second chair’. Sky Sports’ Ted Kravitz testified after Monza of a painful moment: Verstappen invited Tsunoda for the team photo, on which the Japanese muttered: “No, I can’t.” A symbol of its growing alienation. Red Bull has not yet officially responded, but sources report that Mekies has invested an emergency meeting. “We fully support Yuki,” is the official line, but Tsunoda’s words echo the paddock: “If they want to replace me, fine. But then they know they make a mistake. I am not a pawn in their chess game.”
The Azerbaijan weekend, with its winding streets and high risks, offers Tsunoda a chance of revenge. A strong qualification, perhaps even a stage, could dampen the rumors. But the damage has been done. In a sport where loyalty is scarce, Tsunoda has let a bomb explode that will chase Red Bull for months. While the sun goes over the Caspian Sea, everyone wonders: is this the end of Tsunoda’s dream of the energy drink giant, or the spark that drives him into a comeback? One thing is certain: the peace is hard to find in Milton Keynes.
