Dec.20 (GMM) Yuki Tsunoda “would have deserved” a promotion to Purple Bull Racing, however misplaced out to Liam Lawson in key areas.
That’s the reason of workforce advisor Dr Helmut Marko, as Purple Bull introduced that rookie Lawson, 22, and never the way more skilled Tsunoda, will probably be changing Sergio Perez for 2025.
Marko says the Japanese driver took the information nicely.
“He’s in Japan proper now and I spoke to him on the cellphone,” Marko advised f1-insider.com. “He took the information comparatively calmly.
“I advised him to maintain pushing onerous with the Racing Bulls after which we’ll see what occurs. It was a optimistic response,” the 81-year-old added.
Crew boss Christian Horner insisted it was a tough resolution to miss Tsunoda, however indicated that the job of being Max Verstappen’s teammate is “daunting”.
The matter was mentioned at size in a gathering of Purple Bull workforce officers and shareholders within the hours instantly after the Abu Dhabi finale.
“The engineers offered comparative figures, which we used as the premise for the choice,” mentioned Marko. “In precept, it was a luxurious downside – each would have deserved the promotion.
“However Lawson might have extra room for enchancment sooner or later. His psychological power particularly was the deciding issue ultimately.”
Horner additionally famous that Lawson’s “tempo was a bit bit higher” than Tsunoda’s as they went head-to-head during the last a part of the season at Racing Bulls (RB).
“What struck me most about Liam is that you just put him in a troublesome scenario and he copes. He has a troublesome racing mentality and he’s not afraid to struggle wheel-to-wheel and even use contact if mandatory,” he added.
“So I believe he’ll do an incredible job for us.”
Former RB (beforehand Toro Rosso-Alpha Tauri) workforce boss Franz Tost, nevertheless, has a transparent warning for the younger New Zealander.
“All I can say about Liam is that he has to do his personal factor and by no means attempt to compete with Max,” mentioned the Austrian. “He’s removed from previous his prime and has infinite capability. And he now has the self esteem of a four-time world champion.
“If Liam focuses on Max’s instances, it can go incorrect for him. He should solely take into consideration himself and attempt to enhance the automobile along with Max. Anything could be deadly and doomed to failure,” Tost mentioned.
As for Lawson, he smiled as he defined that Marko’s infamous brutality with driver choices has ready him nicely for his new function. “Ah, the cellphone calls from Helmut after I was about 16,” he mentioned. “He at all times put the strain on right away.
“You simply knew that in the event you didn’t carry out, you’d be fired. That’s undoubtedly robust, but it surely actually prepares you for System 1.”
