Marko labels Tsunoda in 'form of his life' as pressure mounts on Lawson

Helmut Marko is highly impressed with Yuki Tsunoda’s recent performances. The Red Bull Racing advisor has observed notable improvements in the Japanese driver's approach and consistency, even stating that Tsunoda is in the best form of his career.

Tsunoda qualified eighth for the sprint race at the Shanghai International Circuit. "Yuki has made another great leap forward," said Marko, who praised the young driver to Motorsport-Total. "He has changed management and has performed absolutely brilliantly so far. He is in the form of his life."

Yuki Tsunoda has been overlooked multiple times for the Red Bull seat alongside Max Verstappen, but he has never stopped working on his development. Recently, he made a bold move by parting ways with his previous management team. Tsunoda has also shown significant personal growth, and his hard work finally seems to be paying off.

Meanwhile, Liam Lawson is under growing pressure. Verstappen’s current teammate struggled in China, qualifying last for the sprint race. The criticism has been mounting, and while Marko has urged patience with Lawson, improvement will be necessary sooner rather than later.

In addition, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko was also impressed by the strategic decisions made by Racing Bulls, Tsunoda’s team. According to Marko, Red Bull's sister team executed a clever tactical move during sprint qualifying. Isack Hadjar made a mistake in SQ2, which effectively ruined his lap. While that was certainly not the intended outcome, it did come with an unexpected advantage—Hadjar was then able to provide a slipstream to Tsunoda, helping the Japanese driver secure a spot in Q3. "Technically very well done," he said.