Yuki Tsunoda is ‘ready to fight’ Max Verstappen should Red Bull opt to call him up as a replacement for Sergio Perez after the summer break.
The Japanese racer is one of many options for the reigning champions should they choose to replace Perez mid-season alongside Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson, and the 24-year-old is ready for the challenge.
“If I’m not ready then I wouldn’t have been able to announce the next stint even at VCARB,” Tsunoda said in Hungary. “I’m feeling ready to fight against the top teams, higher positions and even Max.
“In the end, they [Red Bull] are the ones that are going to decide and it’s one of the things I can’t control. I’m just focusing on what I have to do in next two races, Haas is getting really close, so I have to stay focused with our team.”
While Tsunoda is still weeks away from knowing his whereabouts for the final 10 races of the 2024 campaign, he made his thoughts clear on one of his fellow Red Bull prospects getting the call-up.
“If they choose Liam, that would be weird,” he stated. “I mean, for sure, Liam did a really good job when he drove in the team, but I think I did more than that. And we’ll see how it goes. In the end, they know how to manage the drivers.”
Tsunoda now looks ahead to the races in Hungary and Belgium knowing that he has to outperform team-mate Ricciardo to put his name at the forefront of conversations about the next Red Bull F1 driver.
Heading into the Hungarian Grand Prix, Tsunoda has outscored the experienced Aussie 20-11, but with just one top-10 finish in his past four outings, a strong entrance to the summer break is much-needed for the Japanese driver.
If Christian Horner does decide to grant Tsunoda the opportunity to take on Verstappen, then he will face a daunting task. The three-time world champion has brushed off challenges from Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Checo in recent years. The Kanagawa-born star, however, is unfazed.