Yuki Tsunoda shrugged off Max Verstappen’s comments that his recent results are evidence of driver input being less important with the new 2026 Formula 1 cars.
Both drivers were team-mates at Red Bull last year, but while Verstappen finished second in the championship, Tsunoda was down in 17th and therefore replaced by Isack Hadjar for 2026.
The 26-year-old became the team’s reserve driver, but has started the last two races - Zandvoort and Monza - for sister squad Racing Bulls and will do so again in Madrid this weekend.
This is due to a wrist injury Hadjar sustained over the summer break, with the Frenchman being temporarily replaced by Liam Lawson at Red Bull, another driver to have struggled alongside Verstappen in 2025.
Yet Tsunoda and Lawson have both performed valiantly as the Kiwi took seventh in Holland, while the Racing Bulls man scored a point at Monza after just missing out at Zandvoort.
The Japanese driver has been left pleased by his results, particularly given how tough 2025 was, meaning he is not letting the four-time world champion’s comments affect him.
Yuki Tsunoda, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
He said in Madrid: “It's his comments, so... I don't know. I really just read it, to be honest. That's it.
“It's a different car, for sure. Obviously, energy deployments and stuff is different. It's obviously part of things that you can't really push flat out in some corners. Something I experienced in Monza.
“But, yeah, that's it. I'm not really taking anything from his comments and compare to my results, what I showed in two races, it's a very individual thing, I think. So, I think I've done a good job and that's it.”
Verstappen has been one of the most vocal critics of the new 2026 regulations, describing it in pre-season as “Formula E on steroids” due to the reliance on energy management.
And there have been times this year in which the more electrical ruleset has taken over the driver challenge, such as Lando Norris being ‘forced’ into overtaking Lewis Hamilton at Suzuka. Or in Spa, where McLaren pointed to the “self-learning elements” of the power unit impacting racing.
These all led Verstappen to use Lawson and Tsunoda’s recent results as more evidence of the changes F1 has undergone in 2026.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Mark Thompson / Getty Images
The Dutchman told the BBC: “In the history of the sport, normally the driver that is the most committed, the latest on the brakes, earlier on throttle, committing in the high-speed [corners], they get rewarded, because you just gain that time in the corner.
“But now you're constantly thinking about, ‘In this corner I might have to hold in a bit. Go later on throttle. Or brake earlier. Or lift off. And then I have more top speed.’ Stuff like that. It's so unnatural. It's so not how it should be.
"No disrespect, and I hope no one picks up on this, but look at Yuki. He jumps in the car.
"Never driven the car before. Immediately competitive. Liam jumps from the Racing Bulls to the Red Bull – immediately competitive. It's because these cars are numb to your driver inputs.
“Of course, yes, you still have to do a good lap and you still have to commit, the fastest drivers will always come out on top, but it's really, really limited, like a choke hold or something. You're held back.”
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Originally published by motorsport.com —
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