Tsunoda splits with managers amid missed Red Bull promotion for F1 2025

Yuki Tsunoda reshuffled his administration crew amid dropping out on a Purple Bull promotion to Liam Lawson for the 2025 Method 1 marketing campaign. 

The Racing Bulls driver was beforehand managed by Mario Miyakawa and Luis Alvarez, earlier than parting methods with each shortly after the 2024 season led to December.

Tsunoda is now being managed by Mexican Diego Menchaca, who contested European single-seaters till 2018 earlier than switching to sportscars.

He has competed within the Worldwide GT Open for the previous two years having completed runner-up in 2023, however from 2025 he’ll focus totally on driver administration as he additionally works with F3’s Noah Stromsted. 

“I’m not working [with] Mario anymore, and Luis as nicely,” Tsunoda confirmed to Autosport. “I am actually pleased with Diego.

“He is motivated, undoubtedly. As soon as we determined to work collectively, he instantly went to Helmut’s [Marko, Red Bull advisor] workplace to construct a relationship. That type of effort, I actually recognize – and clearly, Helmut did too.

“They have already got a very good relationship, which is an efficient begin. However ultimately, an important factor is to carry out on monitor, which is able to make Diego’s life simpler.”

The 2025 F1 season might be Tsunoda’s fifth within the sequence, all coming with Purple Bull’s sister squad which has raced beneath the AlphaTauri, RB and now Racing Bulls guises because the 24-year-old’s debut.

Purple Bull has by no means severely thought of Tsunoda for a promotion to its primary squad, regardless of outperforming his previous three team-mates in Nyck de Vries, Daniel Ricciardo and Lawson.

The choice to advertise Lawson for 2025 sparked combined reactions within the paddock, however the 23-year-old was lengthy tipped to interchange Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s team-mate even earlier than the Mexican’s departure was formally confirmed.

So Tsunoda will now accomplice rookie Isack Hadjar at Racing Bulls and he’ll begin the marketing campaign because the Italian outfit’s clear primary driver after ending a career-best of twelfth within the 2024 standings.

“Yuki final yr did a step I believe none of us was anticipating,” stated Racing Bulls crew boss Laurent Mekies throughout 2025 pre-season testing in Bahrain.

Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Crew

Picture by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Pictures

“[He] did an enormous step ahead by way of pace, by way of maturity, by way of technical suggestions – and I believe if there’s one other step like that in Yuki this yr, it may be actually, actually attention-grabbing!

“So by way of what would a very good yr appear like for him, it’s to see one other step of the identical magnitude of what we have seen final yr.”

Tsunoda’s future past 2025, nevertheless, stays unsure. Talking to the media shortly after Lawson’s promotion was introduced, Horner questioned whether or not it “is sensible” to maintain Tsunoda within the Purple Bull household if he’s not in rivalry for a senior crew seat this yr.

If Purple Bull releases him on the finish of the season, Tsunoda’s choices seem restricted. He was in talks with Haas final yr and was additionally being thought of by Sauber, however Purple Bull opted to increase his contract for one more season.

Since then, each groups have locked of their driver line-ups for the subsequent few years, leaving Tsunoda with few apparent alternate options ought to he discover himself out of a seat for 2026.