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Red Bull driver Max Verstappen confirmed that him liking former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde's post criticizing the Austrian team's recent driver swap was not a "mistake". The Dutch driver will have a new teammate in the form of Yuki Tsunoda for the remainder of the 2025 season after the Austrian team demoted Liam Lawson to Visa Cash App Racing Bulls after just two races.
The Milton-Keynes outfit decided to drop the Kiwi driver from the second seat as he was unable to extract the required performance from the RB21 and struggled to get close to the Dutchman's on-track results.
After the announcement of switching Lawson with Tsunoda, former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde posted a passionate note on the issue. The former Caterham driver had criticized Red Bull for its driver management and offered his support to the 23-year-old.
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The Dutch driver's post caught the attention of many, including Max Verstappen, who liked the post. In the pre-race interviews in Japan, the four-time F1 world champion was asked about his intention behind liking the post, to which he replied (via RacingNews365):
"I liked the text, so that says enough, right? It wasn't a mistake. That sometimes happens when you click on something."
Verstappen further expressed his disagreement with the Austrian team on the driver switch and added:
"My reaction is known within the team. That was not only about the change but also about other things. We already discussed that during the last race weekend and in the factory."
Yuki Tsunoda will be Max Verstappen's sixth teammate at Red Bull since the latter joined them in the middle of 2016.
Max Verstappen comments on Yuki Tsunoda joining him as a teammate
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen stated that Yuki Tsunoda getting a promotion ahead of his home race in Japan was a "natural progression".
Speaking with F1.com, the 27-year-old spoke candidly about his new teammate and said:
“I’ve known Yuki a long time because he has been a part of the Red Bull family. It’s a very natural progression. Everyone always does their very best to be successful in Formula 1 and everyone deserves their chances, I think the team has been working quite well with him to prepare him in the best way possible to start here.”
"Give him a drink and yeah, he gets really fun. No, he’s a really great guy. He’s been in F1 now for a while, he’s built up quite a bit of experience. He’s very passionate and that’s very nice to see.”
Despite a difficult start to the 2025 season, Max Verstappen is currently P2 in the driver's standings and is just eight points behind McLaren driver Lando Norris.
