Former Red Bull driver terms Yuki Tsunoda's 'Driver of the Day' award a 'sympathy vote'

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull's newest signing, won the Driver of the Day award at the 2025 Japanese GP after he finished P12. However, former Red Bull test driver Antonio Felix da Costa took aim at Tsunoda, claiming his award was a 'sympathy vote.'

Tsunoda returned to his home Japan for the Japanese Grand Prix in a Red Bull suit. The Milton Keynes-based squad fired Liam Lawson after two races into the 2025 season and demoted him back to the Racing Bulls. Tsunoda, meanwhile, was promoted as Max Verstappen's teammate from the Japanese GP onwards.

However, the homeboy had a disappointing qualifying session as he failed to advance past Q2 session and finished P15. Moreover, during the main race on Sunday, April 6, Tsunoda was unable to score points, finishing P12 while his teammate Verstappen won the race from pole position.

Regardless, Yuki Tsunoda won the 'Driver of the Day' award after fans voted for him in huge numbers. However, former Red Bull test driver Antonio Felix da Costa wasn't impressed with the results and discredited Tsunoda's award by labeling it as a 'sympathy vote.'

"I miss the times where the “Driver of the Day Award” was for the best driver and not a sympathy vote," Costa said on the X platform.

Tsunoda's Red Bull debut didn't meet expectations as he was close to Verstappen's time during free practice sessions. However, his pace disappeared in the qualifying session and the main race, resulting in zero points.

That being said, as Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko claimed before, Tsunoda's seat is safe for the entire 2025 season. He will have time to prove himself worthy of the second seat, unlike Lawson, who was sacked after just two races.

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Yuki Tsunoda assesses his debut race with Red Bull

Yuki Tsunoda at F1 Grand Prix Of Japan - Source: Getty

Yuki Tsunoda made his debut for Red Bull at the 2025 Japanese GP, four years after competing in Racing Bulls. However, he failed to score points, finishing P12 after starting the race from P15 on Sunday.

While assessing his race, Tsunoda said:

“Mixed feelings. Obviously, the result is not the result I wanted. At least, I wanted to finish in the points this weekend. I think in qualifying, I just have to do a bit better. I think the pace was there; I was just stuck in traffic all around. It was pretty frustrating, but at the same time, I feel like I’ve learned a lot of things in the 53 laps. I learned more than anything, so I’m positive about that."

Yuki Tsunoda has reportedly been told to race as close to Max Verstappen as possible by Red Bull's senior leadership group. Despite his disappointing performance in Suzuka, his seat is likely not in danger.