1997 Formula 1 Drivers’ champion Jacques Villeneuve predicts 2025 will be Yuki Tsunoda’s final campaign in the series without intervention from backers Honda.
After four seasons at the Red Bull-owned Racing Bulls outfit, Tsunoda was overlooked for a promotion to race alongside Max Verstappen.
Instead, Liam Lawson got the nod with just 11 Grand Prix starts to his name and Tsunoda will now have to contest a fifth season with the Faenza-based Racing Bulls squad.
Honda has backed Tsunoda throughout his F1 career, even negotiating to get him his maiden Red Bull test in Abu Dhabi last month.
2025 will be the final season with Honda powering the two Red Bull teams before a switch to Aston Martin, which Villeneuve believes will land Tsunoda in a precarious situation.
“Tsunoda will be the first driver to leave the grid,” Villeneuve said of the 2025 class in conversation with Action Network.
“He’s only there because of Honda. At some point this will stop.
“And the writing is quite clear that this is his last season with the Red Bull family anyway.
“And I don’t see any team wanting him unless there’s a big Honda push.”
Despite Villeneuve’s pessimism, Tsunoda fared favourably to both of his team-mates during the 2024 season, maintaining the upper hand over Daniel Ricciardo and Liam Lawson in comparative head-to-head race and qualifying statistics.
Assessing Tsunoda’s future options
2026 will see Red Bull embark on an in-house engine development project as Tsunoda’s backer Honda will begin a works partnership with Aston Martin.
That leaves Tsunoda in all likelihood having to race for a non-Honda-powered team in 2026.
Fernando Alonso is contracted with Aston Martin through to the end of next season and Lance Stroll appears to have tenure at the squad owned by his father Lawrence.
Cadillac as an 11th team could provide a viable option for Tsunoda in 2026 should the Japanese driver part ways with Red Bull, but he will face stiff competition from the likes of Valtteri Bottas, and Sergio Perez.
Several other teams on the grid have drivers locked into multi-year deals: Ferrari, McLaren, Sauber and Williams which again makes options limited for Tsunoda.
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