Yuki Tsunoda advised against replacing Liam Lawson at Red Bull by 6x F1 race winner 

Six-time F1 winner Ralf Schumacher believes Yuki Tsunoda and other drivers should not replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull. Speaking to Sky Sports Germany, he suggested that Racing Bulls may currently have a more competitive car than the RB21, making a switch to the senior team less appealing.

Lawson’s struggles in the opening two races have fueled speculation about his future, with reports suggesting that Tsunoda could be in line for a promotion. However, Schumacher disagrees with this notion, arguing that Red Bull’s technical director, Pierre Wache, has yet to resolve the RB21’s issues—similar to the technical challenges the team faced last year. Given these ongoing problems, he believes a move to the senior team wouldn’t necessarily benefit Tsunoda’s career.

Commenting on the speculation surrounding Tsunoda and Lawson, Schumacher said (via Motorsport):

“I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. If I were Tsunoda’s manager, I wouldn’t advise him to go there, because at the moment, the Racing Bull is the better car, and Tsunoda is doing very well with it. Moving to Red Bull wouldn’t do him any favours.

“I also believe that Waché is not necessarily overwhelmed by the task, but he doesn’t have it under control. This was meant to be a development concept, but he already struggled with it last year, and now with the new car, he still hasn’t figured it out. So I honestly can’t imagine why he would suddenly be able to fix it now.”

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Ralf Schumacher reckons Dr. Marko wants Liam Lawson out of Red Bull soon

Ralf Schumacher believes that Dr. Helmut Marko is eager to move Liam Lawson out of Red Bull sooner rather than later. The former F1 driver claimed that Yuki Tsunoda was originally set to replace Lawson as early as the Japanese GP. However, he argued that Red Bull should focus on improving their car rather than making changes to their driver lineup.

Schumacher also pointed out that Sergio Perez’s strong start to the 2024 season was largely due to the car’s competitiveness at the time. He suggested that Red Bull’s failure to properly develop their car has contributed to Lawson's drop in form, rather than it being solely down to the driver’s performance.

Speaking to Sky Sports Germany, Schumacher spoke about the Red Bull swap saying (via PlanetF1):

“Liam Lawson is already out for the next race. Tsunoda will replace him. If the doctor has his way, relatively quickly.”

However, giving his own opinion on the Red Bull lineup, he said:

“I would recommend leaving it as it is and making the car better. Sergio Perez was good at the beginning last year because the car was good and bad at the end because the car was simply bad. They are not overwhelmed by the task, but they don’t have it under control. It’s a concept of further development and they didn’t manage that last year.”

A long-standing theory in the paddock suggests that Red Bull’s car development has always been tailored to suit Max Verstappen’s driving style. The Dutchman prefers a strong front end with high downforce, which has influenced the team’s car evolution over the years.

While this setup has played to Verstappen’s strengths, it has often proved challenging for his teammates—such as Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Sergio Perez—who have struggled to adapt.

The only driver who managed to cope with this driving characteristic was Daniel Ricciardo before his departure from the team. With Ricciardo now out of the equation and Liam Lawson stepping in, the Milton Keynes-based outfit face a familiar dilemma: making the car more drivable for their second driver. Ensuring both cars consistently score points is crucial, especially given the challenges they have already faced in 2024.