Yuki Tsunoda continues to be very loyal to Red Bull because of the history he shares with the outfit. The Japanese driver made his debut in F1 with AlphaTauri back in 2021. He has been associated with the team ever since. But he wants to be with them in the future as well despite all the rumors. There are speculations that Tsunoda could be tempted to join Aston Martin because of his longstanding loyalty to Honda.
Although Honda provides engines to Red Bull now, they will provide the power units to the Silverstone-based team from the 2026 season onwards. However, even though Honda is about to partner with Aston Martin in the near future, Tsunoda has no interest in leaving the Red Bull family.
Speaking about this, the 23-year-old said to International media as per F1 Maximal, “I don’t want Red Bull to think that I am focusing on Aston Martin or something else. I’ve been with Honda since I was 18, but I just have to focus on performance for Red Bull, not for Aston Martin or whatever. I hope Red Bull doesn’t take these things the wrong way and really considers me for the future.”
It is pertinent to note that there is a possibility that Tsunoda could also get that Red Bull seat in the future. Since Sergio Perez’s contract runs out at the end of 2024, the Milton Keynes outfit may look to sign someone from their sister team. This means that Tsunoda could be in a battle with Daniel Ricciardo for that second seat.
Why has Yuki Tsunoda’s connection with Honda been important?
Formula 1 is a sport where sponsorships can help drivers immensely. A sponsor can monetarily support a driver to stay in the sport even when things don’t go the racer’s way. This was seen earlier when Alex Albon received monumental support from the Yoovidhya family, co-creator of Red Bull.
As for Yuki Tsunoda, Honda played a similar role in keeping him in the sport. The Japanese driver received enormous support from the Japanese manufacturers. They are the reason why Red Bull overlooked Liam Lawson, according to Bernie Collins.
Honda contributes $10 million a season to Red Bull to keep the 23-year-old with AlphaTauri. Collins believes that this sponsorship money is the reason why Tsunoda is still at Red Bull’s sister team. She believes that the better option for the team would have been to have Liam Lawson partner with Daniel Ricciardo.
