Officer: Red Bull replaces Lawson with Tsunoda from Japan GP

Red Bull made official the arrival of Yuki Tsunoda replacing Lawson from the Japan Grand Prix

Red Bull officially announced that Yuki Tsunoda will replace Liam Lawson in the Senior Red Bull Racing team from the Japan Grand Prix. The 24 -year -old received approval to replace Lawson after two first difficult races for the Neozyle.

Christian Horner, director and CEO of the Red Bull team, declared: “It has been difficult to see Liam fight with the RB21 in the first two races and, therefore, we have collectively made the decision to make an anticipated change. We arrived at the 2025 season with two ambitions: retain the World Pilot Championship and recover the World Constructor Title, and this is a purely sports decision.

“We recognize that there is a lot of work to do with the RB21 and Yuki’s experience will be very beneficial for the development of the current car. We welcome the team and hope to see him at the RB21 steering wheel.

“We have the duty to protect and develop Liam, and together, after such a difficult beginning, we see that it makes sense to act quickly so that Liam can gain experience while continuing his career in the F1 with Visa Cash APP Racing Bulls, an environment and a team that knows very well.”

Lawson ran with Tsunoda in the last stages of 2024 after replacing Daniel Ricciardo in the then team called RB, and his performances were enough to win an ascent to Red Bull as the new teammate of Max Verstappen in 2025 after the departure of Sergio ‘Checo’ Pérez.

However, Lawson had trouble becoming familiar with the RB21 during the weekends of the Australia and China Grand Prix, crashing into the first in the midst of treacherous conditions before crossing the line in 15th place in Shanghai, which later became 12 after the disqualifications of Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly that went ahead.

Earlier this week it was reported that the 23 -year -old could be replaced in the team as soon as in Round 3 in Japan, and now it becomes official that Tsunoda will occupy Lawson’s seat when the F1 returns to Suzuka from April 4 to 6, with Lawson returning to the Racing Bulls team next to the rookie Isack Hadjar.