The F1 paddock isn’t a place where friendships are likely to survive. And within an outfit such as Red Bull, where the second seat has a revolving door for drivers, it makes it all the more difficult to maintain a cordial relationship with one’s ‘rival’.
The duo of Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson have been pitted against each other in recent years as they both vied for a spot on the main Red Bull team. But their relationship, as friends, charts all the way back to their junior days. Having raced each other in junior categories, the two got to know each other quite well.
However, the turmoil to get that coveted spot alongside Max Verstappen has now seemingly taken a toll on their friendship. At the start of the 2025 season, Red Bull chose Lawson to replace Sergio Perez—meaning Tsunoda was snubbed once again by the Milton Keynes-based outfit.
But as the Kiwi driver struggled to adapt to the RB21, Tsunoda was proving his mettle at Racing Bulls to usurp that place. With the Japanese driver having replaced Lawson after only two race weekends in 2025, Tsunoda believes this tug-of-war has affected their camaraderie.
“I think I felt it a little bit, to be honest, in the first half of the season this year, we don’t have the friendship that we used to have,” he told BBC Sport in an interview.
“i think i felt it a little bit to be honest in the first half of the season, we don’t have the friendship that we used to have.” — yuki talking about liam. pic.twitter.com/SkdHQi5uhI
— dani (@yukierrewins) April 2, 2025
In fact, after the swap, Tsunoda wasn’t even sure if he was going to see Lawson and talk with him. But the duo did come face-to-face in Japan for a show run organized by Red Bull and Honda in Tokyo ahead of the Grand Prix weekend at the Suzuka International Circuit.
As the season progresses with Lawson getting back to Racing Bulls and Tsunoda plying his trade at the Milton Keynes outfit, things might get colder between the duo. Lawson hasn’t really taken the news well, and one cannot blame him for feeling miffed.
“I left China starting preparations for Japan, and basically I had a phone call saying this was what was going to happen,” he explained, highlighting how shocked he was getting the axe.
F1 is a brutal sport, and these sorts of driver changes and dynamics are not new—and safe to say, this is bound to happen again in the future as well.
