Yuki Tsunoda is keen to make the step up to Red Bull to replace Sergio Perez, with him trying to prove himself to the Milton Keynes-based team.
Tsunoda is in his third season with Red Bull’s sister team AlphaTauri and has arguably exceeded everyone’s expectations.
His first and second season in Formula 1 were bitterly disappointing, with the Japanese driver often proving to be hot-headed and prone to driver errors.
However, he’s shown a new side of himself this season which has seen him become the Faenza-based team’s leader in many ways, something which has come at an excellent time for the young driver.
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He’s once again out of contract at the end of the season, but most believe he’s done enough for another deal with the side for 2024.
Tsunoda is responsible for all of AlphaTauri’s points this season and has seen team-mates come and go, with Nyck de Vries having started the campaign alongside him.
Daniel Ricciardo then replaced the Dutch driver from the Hungarian Grand Prix, before a crash at Zandvoort resulted in Liam Lawson being called up to take the Australian’s place until he’s fit.
All the different partners have offered Tsunoda several challenges, with him working hard on becoming a better driver.
He openly admits himself that his first two seasons weren’t good enough, to the extent that he didn’t feel like he showed “how good I am”.
There is no doubting Tsunoda has the speed, with Honda having been very impressed with the 23-year-old.
Honda have offered Tsunoda a lot of support over the years, something which has led to suggestions that the driver could follow the Japanese manufacturer to Aston Martin in 2026, when they depart Red Bull for the Silverstone-based side.
It’s something which Tsunoda seemingly would be open to should Red Bull not want to keep him in the family, with him recognising that there is every possibility that he’s released by the energy drink company.
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“It would be nice if I could be able to stay at Red Bull,” Tsunoda told RacingNews365. “But, to be honest, these things I don’t know.
“They will decide it and I just have focus on what I have to do and make the results – naturally those two things will come.
“I don’t try to think about those things – maybe I can step up to Red Bull. Those are things that you never know. So it’s useless to think about those things, I’m just focused on what I’m doing and keep delivering my results.
“I want to focus more on showing my value as a driver, not just for Red Bull but also for the other teams, which is the most important thing.
“That is my target. I think [in] the last two years, I didn’t improve enough as a driver, my value, how good I am.”