Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko remains tight-lipped on Yuki Tsunoda's future teammate at RB

Red Bull advisor, Helmut Marko claims that RB’s problem finalizing their driver lineup is a result of plenty of options. Speaking to the Dutch edition of the Motorsport Network, the Austrian deflected from naming the driver lineup for Visa Cashapp RB.

However, RB chief Peter Bayer clearly stated in the press conference in Monaco that they were content with their current line up of Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda. In exclusive interviews with Sportskeeda, both drivers were also keen on being retained for the 2025 season, with the Japanese driver expressing his loyalty to Honda and Red Bull.

Upon being asked about the same by Motorsport Network, Marko was tight lipped on Tsunoda’s teammate at RB. He deflected to saying that the Faenza team was spoilt with options such as Ayumu Iwasa, who is another Japanese driver in the Red Bull talent pool and is currently in the Japanese Super Formula series.

Speaking about options for RB in the Red Bull talent pool, Marko said:

“It's a luxury problem! We have another Honda driver in addition to Tsunoda who finishes good races and that's Iwasa. He hasn't won a race this year because he had a bad start twice, but is still third in the championship. Those are two Japanese drivers who have a long-term contract with us, so we have to see how that goes on in the long run.”

When asked about what Iwasa had to do to get an F1 drive, the Red Bull advisor said:

“Win the Super Formula championship. So let's first show how he wins it. His first race was not good, but in the second race he was actually the best driver.”

In Monaco, Peter Bayer clearly stated his wishes to keep Tsunoda for 2024, saying:

“Yes. I think we’re very happy with both of our drivers, and honestly, we’re not wasting time with discussing ifs and whens.”

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Red Bull advisor evaluates other prospects in talent pool

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko believes that they have several talented juniors this year in F2 and F3. The octogenarian mentioned Isaac Hajdar and Pepe Martin, who are currently in the F2 series, where the former is running second in the championship. The Campos Racing driver is trailing championship leader Paul Aron by two points. The Austrian felt that the Frenchman has been strong in his F2 campaign and is worth considering as one of their better talents in the junior series. He felt Martin is yet to have a consistent season and is yet to iron out his flaws.

Speaking about the Red Bull talent pool in the junior formula series, Marko said:

“We have Hadjar doing very well in Formula 2 and also Marti, although he still makes too many mistakes. With Hadjar, you have to remember that he was hit in the round during the first race and that he has also experienced technical problems twice, while he was in a winning position. He's still second in the championship, so he's definitely one of the fastest and most consistent men in this year's championship. In Formula 3, we also have fast guys. A few years ago they all said that our juniors would not perform well enough, but what do they still have to say now?”

In Formula 3, Red Bull has four more drivers, Arvid Lindblad, Tim Tramnitz, Oliver Goethe, and Kacper Stzuka. Spoilt for choice for their senior team, Red Bull has Sergio Perez, Max Verstappen, and potentially Daniel Ricciardo as options in the driver market. If the Australian driver doesn’t turn around his season prior to summer break, it is likely that he will lose out on the 2025 seat at Milton Keynes. For RB, they have Liam Lawson waiting in the wings and Yuki Tsunoda, whom they can retain at least until 2025