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Lewis Hamilton's former adversary Nico Rosberg felt that the reason Red Bull is not replacing Sergio Perez with Yuki Tsunoda is due to the latter's 'inconsistency and attitude'. The young Japanese driver has been the mainstay at RB for a while now after debuting in 2021.
Once Pierre Gasly left the team and joined Alpine, Yuki Tsunoda was paired with three different drivers. First, it was Nyck de Vries, who found his way out of the team because of a lack of performance compared to Tsunoda.
After the departure of the Dutch driver, the Japanese driver has since been paired alongside Liam Lawson and also Daniel Ricciardo. The Australian got his marching orders after Singapore and will be replaced by the New Zealander.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner has hinted that Lawson is auditioning for Sergio Perez's seat for 2025 if he can impress in the last 6 races. At the same time, there were questions over why Tsunoda had not been given a shot. Speculating on the matter, Lewis Hamilton's former adversary Nico Rosberg claimed that it was due to his 'inconsistency and attitude'. Talking to Sky Sports, Rosberg said (via PlanetF1),
“I think Yuki is doing well, and his peaks are very strong – like [in Singapore], he really did a great qualifying. The problem is there’s a bit of inconsistency there, then his attitude sometimes, you know, is very aggressive, and that’s why he was looked over this year when they were looking to replace Perez potentially."
He added,
“So that definitely came as a bit of a blow to him, because I’m sure he had hopes on that, but anyway, he’s doing a good job at RB.”
Red Bull does not have a viable option to replace Sergio Perez, claims Rosberg
Talking further on the matter, Nico Rosberg claimed that while they don't see Tsunoda as a possible option, Red Bull doesn't have a viable and ready alternative within the ranks to replace Sergio Perez. The team gave Ricciardo an opportunity that didn't work out, which led to them giving Lawson a six-race stint to show something.
Commenting on the situation at Red Bull, Rosberg said (via the aforementioned source),
“It’s a difficult situation for them. The thing is that they don’t really have a replacement either. [Yuki] Tsunoda, they don’t see him as quite strong enough to be replacing Perez. Ricciardo is out so there’s not really a replacement, and that’s making it even more difficult."
Talking about the Mexican driver's slump in performances, Rosberg further added:
“It’s also so strange though, with Perez, because we all know he’s a good driver, and he at times was actually challenging Max for the World Championship in small segments, even last year. And now he’s just somehow dropped so far back. It’s very, very strange."
Sergio Perez's future at Red Bull comes down to his performance in the next six races. If he's not at a satisfactory level, he could face the axe and be replaced by someone else.
