2025 F1 General Discussion Thread

dulpit

The Race are reporting on this too, so looks like it's going to be a done deal.

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-role-red-bull-preparing-to-replace-lawson-tsunoda-f1-seat/

flazio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123298905#Comment_123298905

Mario's priority is rescuing Princess Peach so it's probably all down to Marko

Appletart Upsetter

Their mistake, was not placing Yuki in the Red Bull to begin with. He's familiar with all of the tracks and cannot be considered inferior to Lawson.

Unfortunately, his promotion might be the worst possible move for him on a professional level. He'll most likely struggle also.

Brief_Lives

yea, it is being reported in lots of places now, although there is a lot of piggybacking

pjohnson

Tbf I doubt Yuki is worried what comes next as he is likely leaving the RB family regardless after this year and heading to Aston Martin instead.

prawnsambo

Hard to know how he'll fare in the RB, but he's been putting in very impressive qualifying times in the VCARB, so he's probably the best option right now. Can't be any worse than Lawson. But that has to be it, RB can't keep swapping drivers out, the cupboard is pretty bare at this stage.

dulpit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299040#Comment_123299040

That's always just been speculation. Alonso and Stroll both have contracts for next year (well Alonso does, but would Laurence fire his son?), and there's also been rumours that Max might be tempted there for 2027 (when Alonso retires) to reunite with Honda and Newey.

Yuki is in an awkward sport right now, if he smashes the red bull he's sorted. It he struggles as badly as others he's screwed.

Andrew76

Just reading the stories now, wow! I didn't think they'd drop Lawson so soon or that Yuki would ever get that seat the way he had been passed up for so long. Thought they'd at least give Liam the next few races on circuits he's more familiar with. According to Kym Ilman's video below, the story was leaked by some dutch reporter - it was a board decision to demote Lawson. I didn't know Honda were paying 10 mil to have Yuki in the RB seat, and apparently they were willing to pay extra to get him into the Red Bull along side Max.

What an shitshow from the Red Bull management - Horner/Marko/whomever else decides on drivers. They extended Perez's contract too early, then pay him off to replace him with Liam in instead of someone more experienced in Yuki. They gave Liam feck all preparation in comparison to what Merc did with Antonelli, then dump him after two races on tracks he's never raced on in a car that Horner admitted was difficult and designed around Max liking a pointy front end. On that last point, Max had been complaining about the direction the car was going in even before Newey left - he knew it was becoming too much of a handful. You have to wonder where the team will be if or when Max leaves.

I feel sorry for Liam - hopefully he'll do well in the RB. Will be fascinating to see how Yuki gets on, you'd imagine he will be closer to Max than Liam was.

https://youtu.be/tcLFXR_pKds

dulpit

BBC confirming it too:

https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/articles/cqjd5lg7wvjo

What an absolute shambles of a team Red Bull have become.

thefa

Doesn’t feel like that long ago that Red Bull were the epitome of a well run team.

flazio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299869#Comment_123299869

That reminds me, Calum Nichols, the Red Bull mechanic recognisable as the tall one with the dreadlocks, brought out a life in the pitlane book earlier this year. Must give it a read and see how well run they were.

mickdw

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299869#Comment_123299869

The death of the owner seems to be the turning point with the Horner fiasco making things worse.

flazio

They haven't formally confirmed this yet. But I suspect if it wasn't true they'd be super quick to shut it down.

dulpit

Sky are reporting it, it's happening. Just a matter of when.

CFlat

Just heard on Sky. Yuki replacing Lawson in RB. Lawson going to the B team. I don't know why Yuki wasn't the first choice anyway. Looking forward to seeing how he does.

PsychoPete

It's probably the best time to announce it with a week to go till Suzuka the initial media hype will have calmed down some bit and it being Yukis home race in a RedBull the spotlight will be focused on him

prawnsambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123301101#Comment_123301101

Lol. Been posted here since last night and a page of discussion since and here comes Johnny come lately breathlessly announcing the "news". 🤣

Andrew76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123301122#Comment_123301122

I'm trying to remember - didn't Yuki have a day's running in last year's Red Bull at the end of the season? Something he had been promised. Not sure how much that will help him but you'd imagine he'll be in the simulator a ton before the next race. Talk about pressure! I think a good result is to make it to Q3 in quali and then bag some points in the race.

Horner will rightly have the spotlight on him in Japan and hopefully get's asked some tough questions, although it'll be water off a duck's back considering previous issues he's had to deal with. Will have a week to get his answers ready too.

PsychoPete

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123301242#Comment_123301242

He did, I think it was some kind of tyre test in Abu Dhabi, Q3 and finish some where in the top 10 should probably be a give with a RedBull. Horner should be taking the heat from Lawson or Yuki, as you say it won't even faze Horner. Yuki has done a lot of talk about deserving the Redbull seat so the pressure is on him big time, if he fails to get a result out of that car then I'd say his career in F1 is done

Itssoeasy

This is a mess from Red Bull.

afatbollix

If I was management at Red Bull I would want to know if the car is really that hard to drive.

How many drivers have been spat out at this stage? 4?

Max can drive it okish, Imagine if it was actually good to drive he would be walking it.

Put in Yuki and if hes in last place the cars shite.

[Insert Toto meme saying change your **** car]

mr_edge_to_you

At the rate RedBull are going, Yuki could be dropped before he even gets to Japan.

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299080#Comment_123299080

Agreed.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299099#Comment_123299099

"I didn't know Honda were paying 10 mil to have Yuki in the RB seat, and apparently they were willing to pay extra to get him into the Red Bull along side Max."

Its VCARB not RB. I don't care what the classification system says. It's all very confusing in here with some people wrongly using RB for VCARB and others using it as a short for Red Bull.

We need this clarified in here. RB is short for Red Bull and VCARB is short for the other team. What is so hard about that? It is a simple 5 letter word. Does not even take a second to type.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123301101#Comment_123301101

See RB = Red Bull so Andrew 76s statement above makes no sense. It's VCARB not RB. RB Us Red Bull OK.

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123299080#Comment_123299080

See this is how it should be. He has it right.

Andrew76

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123302058#Comment_123302058

It's all very confusing you say and yet you knew exactly what team I was referring to when I said RB i.e. Racing Bulls. If I mean Red Bull then I'll say Red Bull or maybe RBR for Red Bull Racing. You can use whatever term you like. The only thing I'll agree with you on is VCARB being a 5 letter word, just like Checo! 😂

dulpit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123302103#Comment_123302103

I'm going to agree with @AMKC here. It's nobody's fault but red bulls, but they have made the use of the abbreviation RB too bloody vague.

Can we not just call them red bull and racing bulls/VCARB? Just to avoid confusion...

Top Dog

So if Yuki struggles, and Lawson does well we can conclude that the Red Bull is a disaster. But what then? Swap them back around? Leave Yuki struggle with it for the season? Give Daniel a call since he's the only one from half a dozen drivers in the last few seasons to have had minimal issues in the main team?

if both drivers do well in their new seats then it's happy days. Gonna be some shitshow if Yuki also fails following on from Lawson, Perez, Gasly and Albon!

Appletart Upsetter

The positive thing for Yuki, is now that Lawson has set the bench mark so low, any improvement on last place is a win for him.

El_Duderino 09

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123302399#Comment_123302399

True to an extent but Yuki also set the bar in the VCARB. So if he doesn't improve on that then it's definitely a problem with the Red Bull car. They won't enjoy being told their car is crap and they will want to shoot the messenger.

I think Max has too much power in the team. If he's the lead driver (and he obviously is) then he's influencing the design direction.

I think it's time people start seeing the situation for what it is. Max is too cowardly to allow the team to get a top driver to compete with him. He's the boss because they keep hiring rookies and mid level drivers for the second seat. In team meetings which driver will the team listen to? Obviously the multiple world champion and not the rookie or the journeyman.

The team has the car Max wants and that's their own fault. Max is bigger than the team and that's their fault too. The only people who are happy with the situation are Max and his Dad.

Busman Paddy Lasty

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123302315#Comment_123302315

If Yuki in the Oracle Red Bull Racing car gets beaten over the season by Lawson in the Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team car, then they have justification for binning Yuki and keeping Lawson as a future prospect.

He's young and can still do well.