Depressing Yuki Tsunoda verdict issued by Helmut Marko as race to replace Sergio Perez intensifies

Red Bull's Helmut Marko was not happy with Yuki Tsunoda after his crash during Qualifying as the battle to replace Sergio Perez continues to get more intense. The Japanese driver crashed out in Q2 when he was on his final push lap, which led to not only him but teammate Liam Lawson also getting eliminated.

The battle to secure a seat on the senior Red Bull team has continued to get intense as Lawson has entered the fray. For the last few years, Tsunoda has been the benchmark at AlphaTauri/RB. He is, however, not looked at as a possible replacement for Sergio Perez by the team.

This was the reason why Daniel Ricciardo was brought back to assess if he could be the one to replace the Mexican. After an 18-race stint this season, it became clear that the Australian was just not performing at a level satisfactory enough to be promoted to the senior team.

With Ricciardo out, Lawson has now got a shot to prove he can be a strong contender to replace Perez at Red Bull for 2025.

In the last six races, there appears to be a direct shootout between Tsunoda and Lawson for Perez's seat at Red Bull. The pressure is ramped up, and it does appear that the Japanese driver is feeling it as well.

Lawson finished ahead in Austin with the help of an overcut, and in the Mexican GP qualifying, Tsunoda ended up crashing out as he was pushing too much in his RB. Helmut Marko didn't take the incident kindly, as he felt that the Japanese driver was feeling the pressure and hence making mistakes.

"He [Yuki Tsunoda] spun in Austin and now in qualifying he had this crash. We thought he had stabilized, but now, when the pressure comes from Lawson, it's starting to make itself felt," Marko told Sky.

---

Sergio Perez's performance disappoints Helmut Marko

Sergio Perez's performance also didn't give Helmut Marko much to cheer for as the Austrian was not too happy with the Mexican. Perez complained about brake issues hampering him in Qualifying and that led to him losing out in Q1.

Marko was not as conciliatory as he felt that the Mexican's form had not shown the upturn that was expected from him. He said:

“I heard him [Sergio Perez] on the radio complaining a lot about brake problems. We'll have to see what was going on. But the hoped-for upturn that we all expected unfortunately didn't materialize."

Perez's future has been in the spotlight for some time now, and if his performances do not show a marked improvement, it will be very hard to see him retain his position at Red Bull.