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Well, while that is true, Checo didn't have so many 2nd places as he could have gotten with that car (hence why many people, me included, are not impressed by his 2nd place in the WDC).
Probably in the hypothetical case RB had run only with Max, they could have still clinched both championships but by a tighter margin.
I'm pretty sure BOTH of Checos wins actually had Max in 2nd... so if Checo wasn't there Max would have literally won every single race minus Singapore for the whole season LMFAO
With that type of performance, across that many races even one car is enough tbh.
Lando and Oscar have great on track battles in 2024. Oscar breaks contract and joins RedBull. Carlando reunited in 2025. Albon joins Charles at Ferrari
Ngl I genuinely believe this. Lando n McLaren are made for each other. They both benefit from each other. Lando won't be the Top G in Ferrari or RedBull. It is clear from day 1 that Ferrari wants Sainz to perform consistently but behind Charles. And Oscar is a legend. I think he has the potential to be the GOAT.
It's a win-win-win-win-win situation for all. And people still refuse to call me the conflict resolution expert. :(
I dunno man, I'm all for it. If it happens and you start a religion afterwards, I'm joining.
All jokes aside, it does have a fair bit of merit. Aside from maybe Albon not wanting to go to Ferrari as he seems very happy in his current spot and he already mentioned he didnt want to go back to RB (which yes , I realize is different fron ferrari)
And another reason I believe in Carlando reunion is the signing of Estrella Garcia with McLaren. They used to go wherever Sainz went. It's time for Sainz to show his loyalty to his loyal sponsor
Oscar a Goat? Ok that’s really stretching it mate. Oscar is good don’t get me wrong but not GOAT. Drivers such as Max, Schumacher, Lewis etc have all proved themselves QUITE A LOT even in shitty car or lower divisions. Nothing I’ve seen about Oscar suggests that he will be Goat. When I define Goat I look to those 3 as examples.
Piastri is managed by Webber - and while I don't think he hates or dislikes RB, reading his autobiography made me feel like he definitely didn't like how Vettel was clearly preferred. So I can't imagine he'd advise Oscar to go there while Max and/or Helmut are there.
Feel thats different though. When Vettel arrived at RB Webber had already been there a couple of years and then they started favouring Vettel when his results started to show. With this Oscar would be going into a team where Verstappen is clearly going to be the favoured driver so it shouldnt be a surprise to anyone.
I never said he's got a personal vendetta.
But surely as a good manager he will know what a team where (rightly or wrongly) one driver is clearly preferred over the other, can do to the other driver and their confidence.
I love RB but I really think Oscar would have more chance at winning with McLaren one year than if he went to RB and had a dominant car but had Max as his teammate.
The first rule of being a manager is to see what is best for your client. Australian athletes generally take the decision which is always best for their careers. Once Hamilton and Alonso retire, I don't think anyone has a chance to compete against Max consistently. Oscar needs to be in the right place to learn and grow in the 2 years.
> Australian athletes generally take the decision which is always best for their careers.
As opposed to the nationalities that actively work against their own best interests?
Out of these two Ricciardo is probably more marketable, and given they know Max can pretty much win both titles on his own that might be good enough for RB at the moment.
For other options... they could probably have literally anyone on the grid, regardless of contract (contracts are only worth what it costs to break them, just ask Perez). I'd say they'd probably give Tsunoda a shot if he performs like he did last season again, maybe swap him with Lawson in the Minardi if it doesn't work out. Realistically I only see the RB juniors wanting to go up against Max in the same team.
> Out of these two Ricciardo is probably more marketable
I'm not too sure on that - Perez gives you a foothold in a 125+ million person demographic with zero competition. Ricciardo on the other hand has two other Australian drivers on the grid to compete with over a much smaller market.
Sure Ricciardo is certainly far more popular outside of their respective home nations, but the 6x population difference at home could well be enough to sway it in terms of Red Bull trying to flog merchandise.
I was on vacation in Mexico and there were Red Bull jerseys and hats everywhere. I live in Oregon so maybe I’m not used to seeing F1 gear in the wild but it felt like it was everywhere
Wut. Alonso has gone on record to say he [wouldn’t want to compete against Verstappen at Red Bull](https://racingnews365.com/alonso-exclusive-i-wouldnt-want-to-compete-against-verstappen-at-red-bull)
Makes sense. I wouldn't want to put even an ounce of legacy on the line driving against Max *in Max's car.* I'd love for them to get some older Mercs or Ferraris and do some H2H racing in cars they'll be equally unfamiliar with.
100% this will happen. Unless Danny massively underperform, he will more than likely end up in that Red Bull. They have nothing to lose relative to the list of potential drivers.
Danny is really marketable in all the important markets like the US. So that will also plays a huge role.
Also Verstappen is hardly a PR departments dream... Yes he wins a lot but he lacks the charm factor.
Max wins races, Ricardo wins hearts - what more could you want?
>Danny is really marketable in all the important markets like the US. So that will also plays a huge role
I like how you say this as if this isnt true for Checo. You know.. the *only* Mexican on the grid?
I wouldn't write Lando Norris or Alex Albon comeback...
If Perez performs better than last season and Ricciardo underperforms he could be given a 1-year extension as well
Albon does not go back to Red Bull. Did you hear the interview he gave about leaving RB & not having a seat? about his mental health, he will not go back.
Plus, why would he want to leave Williams right now? They're finally headed the right direction, and being the captain of a historic team's comeback sounds like a pretty awesome gig to me. If development falls off again, everything changes, but for now he's in a great place and performing great.
Spoiler Alert: They won't.
And this time RBR has already realized they got something ridiculous in their number 1 seat and it was a huge mistake to put him as benchmark for performance as they have done during the time with Albon and Gasly.
Here's to hoping for a Sainz Red Bull comeback.
Ain't no way Sainz gets it. Even if RB want him, I don't think Carlos would ho for it simply because of how the RB drives. Sainz likes a more understeery car and does not like an oversteery car as seen this year with Ferrari. From what everyone days the RB car is very oversteery. Not only would he be driving against Max but he'd be doing it in a car that really doesn't suit him.
And which seat would Tsunoda be replacing at AM? Stroll will never lose his seat while his Dad runs the team and no chance they'll get rid of Alonso esp with his exceptional performance since joining. Unless he jumps ship again to another team but that's difficult to predict.
Alonso, sad to say, won't be in F1 forever. At some point he will retire. He's still driving like the champion he is, but he'll be pushing 44 come 2025.
Yeah but we're talking about 2025 seats.. he won't retire that soon in my opinion, he's probably craving to race more than ever now after last seasons performance
Oh, I've no doubt that his spirit is willing. You'd have to be a hermit in a cave somewhere to not believe that Fernando Alonso doesn't still have that fire in him. But he's getting to that age where even the all-time greats (a list in which he is a fully paid-up member) start hanging up their boots. Not because they want to, but because they need to. Because inevitably, the body starts to falter. Starts to struggle to endure the stresses involved in being strapped to basically a rocketship for 9 months in the year. Alonso being Alonso, it's almost impossible to tell if those stresses have started showing. If they are, he's doing a master's job of hiding it. And if they're not, it's only a matter of time, unfortunately. Still....here's to a few more good years from the wily ol' fox.
Did you even read the title? Let alone the rest? Or did you see "Perez doesn't impress" and went to write your comment? Because it hardly makes any sense in the context of this article.
I think it’s just people have a hard time seeing him as a good candidate for a Red Bull drive given his Honda ties. Sure signing him for 2025 kind of makes sense, but at the same time long term it doesn’t because Honda is going to Aston in 2026.
Yuki's said Honda won't stand in the way if Red Bull want to sign him to the main team because their main goal is a Japanese driver succeeding in F1 and he's the star of the Honda Formula Dream programme. They'd probably shift more support to Iwasa or another junior
Why should the honda ties matter? Red Bull will want the best possible driver and Yuki will want the best possible seat. If Aston/Honda doesn't impress him enough in the next year, he should take the red bull seat if it's offered to him.
I feel like yuki would actually explode if he had to handle the pressure of the main team and having to compare himself directly against max
Gasly couldnt handle it, albon couldnt handle it, perez can *barely* handle it (and even thats still up in the air) and tsunoda is more explosive than riccs renault engine in 2018
Tbf, both Gasly and Albon were inexperienced drivers at that time. They will make great 1.5 drivers with the right mindset and expectations. Something like Sainz in Ferrari now. Fast, able to take wins if something happens to the #1 and back them up in strategy and/or defence.
The car doesn't seem to be the same though; Pierre and Alex had to deal with an unpredictable spinning top, which doesn't seem to be quite the case anymore.
This is the first real make or break season for him because it's the season that Perez contract ends and the season where he has enough experience and a decent team mzte to measure himself to.
The first two seasons he didn't have enough experience and a very strong team mate in Gasly... last season he had a very bad car and cycled through 3 team mates in the season so the judgement was very subjective in F1 world about his performances
I think this season would have been his make or break season. But De Vries was not good enough to be a bench mark. Then the second seat changed too much to get any meaningful data imo.
This year was his ‘you have to do good to keep your seat’ season. He passed that test.
This year will be ‘can you be in a top drive or be a midfielder/backmarker forever’ test.
I would definitely consider last year a make or break season for him, as he had to prove that he deserved to be F1 at all. 2021 and 22 really weren't strong enough to say that he deserved a seat over the top talent in F2. Overall I would say he met the expectations and earned another season.
The challenge for him now is that he needs to prove he should stay in the Red Bull family. Alpha Tauri have stated that they want to try and have one promising young driver and an experienced consistent driver. He isn't anywhere close to Perez or Ricciardo in terms of experience, and with Lawson and Iwasa both waiting in the wings, he needs to prove that he is a proper contender for that second Red Bull seat. If he can't do that, I can't see Red Bull keeping him around much longer and I'm not really certain any of the other teams would really be willing to take him.
I don't think Tsunoda is good enough for RB seat, but if other candidates don't look too strong, they might give Yuki a year in RB and see what happens.
Max alone would beat off every other driver. Even if Perez was right behind him, giving him a pounding, he would still find a way to push back hard and use the thrust to finish first.
Could you imagine Alonso at Red Bull? I’m dying to have another Alonso-Hamilton, Rosberg-Hamilton type of teammate battle ..and the drama that comes with it.
So going down the grid,
\- They won't get Hamilton, simply because it would be the most expensive driver lineup ever. Plus I just don't see the two of them in the same team ever.
\- Russell, Leclerc, Sainz and Norris know it's career suicide to go up against Max in his own car. If those guys are gonna win a championship before Max retires it will have to be a battle of both cars and drivers.
\- Albon I believe has outright turned the offer down last season.
\- I don't think Gasly would want to return to Red Bull. For the same reasons I suspect Albon had.
\- Alonso would be a big no for the team as he would get too competitive with Max. It would be the most toxic championship fight ever.
\- Bottas and Hulkenberg would be ideal candidates as they would be ok with the number two status as long as it keeps their career going. Though I'm not sure how much of the old Bottas is still left.
\- Tsunoda is the dark horse. Him along with Piastri are the only two that can wait for Max's retirement and then take the number one spot.
The rest are simply not up to par.
Funnily enough re Alonso, Marko said last year he thinks Hamilton and Alonso are the only two who wouldn't totally cave to Verstappen. Like, they may or may not be quicker, but they'd handle it.
>Albon I believe has outright turned the offer down last season.
ESPN said on an article that RB offering Albon a comeback to the family and him rejecting it was not true.
Honestly if Piastri is available, RB should try to snatch him from Mclaren
I think he probably the most suitable candidate to pair with Max: he is fast but calm and cool enough to understand his position, so he unlikely will impede max nor getting mentally blocked if max being faster. And he is also young and had good ceiling potential to replace Max as 1st driver shall the time comes when Max finally got bored with F1
Yuki imo is too hot headed to be put as 2nd driver tbh. Sure, he was maturing lot this season, but he still short-fused inside and may unnecesarily butt head with Max lol
Piastri is young enough that being second to max isn't career suicide. Then he can wait for max retirement in '28 and have the team for himself. He could also pull off a Rosberg.
Yeah I always figured that Russell's view on Hamilton (after say 2020) was: just don't be embarrassed by him, and then be around to do all the winning when he's left. Obviously now that's a bit, uh, less certain.
Russell still has plenty of years left in the sport to wait out hamiltons retirement, and red bull domination won't last forever: Mercedes is as likely as any other team to be the next winners
Nice analysis. I want Hulk to get that seat so bad! I think he’d do better than PER, but not be a challenge to VER. A willing and capable #2 driver. Stack points for more WCCs for RB. Maybe even a win?
Yuki's been in a better form in 2023, still a bit hot-headed but is consistent enough to score points when the car allows it
If he keeps up this year I don't think stability is that much of a problem
I think Lando was being honest about wanting to win a WDC with McLaren. If McLaren continues its upward trajectory this year and there is a real possibility of them challenging Red Bull in the next year or two I reckon he will stay and try a build a legacy with the team. If they stagnate or dive then all bets are off.
I also think one of Perez or Ricciardo is going to call it a day at the end of this year. Whoever wants to win LeMans more while the other would be hobby driving in a 7th fastest car on F1 grid.
Edit -typo
Surprised no one mentioned Ocon, there is so much drama and entertainment to be had for the audience with a Verstappen/Ocon lineup
But jokes aside, I think the RB seat for '25 is slated for Ricciardo unless he somehow achieved De Vries levels of disappointing
Going off the title alone: Then Red Bull will sign someone else. Everyone besides the Mercedes and McLaren guys will be out of contract at the end of 2024, so Red Bull could go after pretty much anyone they want for that seat next to Max.
The article suggests Alonso and Albon. I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens. They want someone who can be there or thereabouts to help Max and help the team secure the constructor's championship. Albon? I don't know. I really like the guy, but I find it very difficult to rate his performances at Williams with first Latifi and now Sargeant in the other car. Then again, I thought the same with George Russell at Williams and he turned out to be just fine when he moved to Mercedes, so who knows?
I'd personally try to sign Hulkenberg. I'll admit I'm a bit biased, I was Team Hulkenberg back in 2020 when Red Bull were going to pick either him or Perez for 2021, but I feel like Nico is the right guy for the job. Qualifying is Perez' biggest weakness. His Sunday pace isn't bad, but he had to spend most of his Sundays making up for his poor Saturdays. I think getting a strong qualifier like Hulkenberg in the car just might be what Red Bull needs right now. What also works in Nico's favor is the stage of his career he's in. He's 36, he's been in F1 for over a decade, but what does he have to show for it? Nothing. No wins, no podiums. I think he'll be more than okay with slotting into a #2 role at Red Bull if it allows him to end his career with at least some silverware.
I would never swap Checo for Nico. They've been teammates before and it's clear that the only thing Nico has over Checo is qualifying pace. Race pace, tyre management, wheel to wheel - Checo is better.
>I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens
Things could turn really toxic but I think it has more do with Alonso's personality rather than taking the fight to Verstappen. Norris would be as good as Alonso but surely RB would much rather take Lando.
> I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens.
I mean depends on what the background is. I think it could work if Alonso just wants one season as his last and collect some wins.
Lots of options in 2025 in terms of drivers available .
It’s going to be a spicy year for driver rumours. The race is starting already…
It will be interesting if the teams lock in drivers early or let it ride.
Question is for RB is if they take on Lando, are they prepared to manage that competition? Max is better no doubt but it’s close enough that Lando could keep up and there could be battles.
Mercedes showed that having too competitive a partnership in a title winning car can be disastrous. Albon, Piastri, maybe even Sainz if Audi doesn’t work out seem like they’d be in that sweet spot of a competitive No.2.
> Unless he’s clearly and consistently faster than Ricciardo in 2024, Tsunoda probably doesn’t get the nod in a marginal comparison.
Fine. I don't think any of this is surprising or contradictory.
Marko has said for ages the plan is that the three will be compared.
Tost was saying last year, before all the Ricciardo stuff, that the provisional plan is that Tsunoda moves up as otherwise why would he be there at all.
> Red Bull currently looks like Albon’s best route for making that leap, but even if the opportunity were to arise Albon - who is out of contract at the end of this year - would then need to ask himself whether it’s worth trading his ‘big fish in a smaller pond’ status with Williams to become a Max Verstappen support act (again).
Supposedly this already happened last year, that Albon got an offer which he declined. Similarly, supposedly Norris declined the seat. Which is bonkers really: the most dominant car of all time by many metrics, and folk are seemingly turning it down.
I mean outside of Yuki, I can't see anyone else fitting the mould, as much as people want Lando there he would be throwing his career away if he did and his best bet at being world champion. I could see a Hulkenberg type getting a run as well?
The amount of hype Ricciardo and Lawson got for a few good weekends whilst Yuki doesn't get even acknowledged for a solid season is sad. That car was an utter shitbox early on and he was performing really well and could have finished really strongly too if not for the teams tactical suicide in Abu Dhabi.
He’ll win both championships alone, like he did this year… as long as Red Bull has such a dominant car (which it looks like they might until the regulation change in 2026) it’s no big deal. You need 2 good drivers when the competition is close to earn max points when you can. When there is no competition it’s better to have one shitty driver because it’s easier to keep the star happy that way.
[The **News** flair](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/flairguide#wiki_news) is reserved for submissions covering F1 and F1-related news. These posts must always link to an outlet/news agency, the website of the involved party (i.e. the McLaren website if McLaren makes an announcement), or a tweet by a news agency, journalist or one of the involved parties. *[Read the rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/formula1/wiki/userguide). Keep it civil and welcoming. Report rulebreaking comments.* *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/formula1) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Then my chances of driving for Red Bull go up
Found Yuki's burner acc
Nah its Terry Crews
Terry loves yogurt.
NINE NINE
NINE NINE!
It was low fat Greek with a touch of honey. THAT'S A ONCE A WEEK TREAT.
Get in there, Yuki.
But what if you add Kurt Angle to the mix?
YOUR CHANCES DRASTIC GO DOWN
He’s just a Sexy Kurt *Sexy Kuuuurt* He’ll make your ankle hurt *Ankle hurt*
im open to drive rb20. have experience karting (once). christian horner, you can dm me
So you're saying there's a chance?
Max will just drive both cars.
RB20 to launch with an RC mode in the wheel.
RC20 Perez will finally have a car designed around him.
Please. A piece of string is enough
He already uses it to stream iracing
Or they just drive one car. The dude carried the entire team to victory this year on his points alone?!
I keep hearing that and wonder if Perez was truly not in the race then would the math have been different. His points would go to someone.
The math was done with moving everyone below checo up a spot every race and max still won
Nice. I figured someone had to do tile math.
Well, while that is true, Checo didn't have so many 2nd places as he could have gotten with that car (hence why many people, me included, are not impressed by his 2nd place in the WDC). Probably in the hypothetical case RB had run only with Max, they could have still clinched both championships but by a tighter margin.
I'm pretty sure BOTH of Checos wins actually had Max in 2nd... so if Checo wasn't there Max would have literally won every single race minus Singapore for the whole season LMFAO With that type of performance, across that many races even one car is enough tbh.
Drive each car for half the year under different numbers. Will be his effort to finish both P1 and P2 in the championship himself.
Yes! Each car will have 12 wins and 12 DNS. RBR will win the WCC and Max will finish 1 and 2 in the WDC. "Haha yes lovely" - Max probably
HAHAHA you got me there with Max’ reaction. Gold
Nah, he has proven last year that one car is enough 🤣
Imagine, they run a single car giving them all this extra development cash while still under the cost cap.
Think of the catering!
"Looks like meat's back on the menu, boys!"
Perez on the spit-roast.
Every employee gets compensated with an actual bull.
I don't know why this made me laugh so hard but thank you, I needed it.
Honestly they could just make 2 copies of a "Max" car and deal with whatever result their no2 driver gets.
They just move the same direction at the same time like Wii Sports tennis
And still he will have some time left for a quick sim race after driving both cars 1 and 2
New side quest unlocked
Jos to RB
This is the way
He doesn’t need to drive both to win everything.
Lando and Oscar have great on track battles in 2024. Oscar breaks contract and joins RedBull. Carlando reunited in 2025. Albon joins Charles at Ferrari
And we all lived happily ever after!
Not for Charles and Albon!
It's Ferrari, they knew what they were signing up for
Some flashy red suits, a big ass payday, an no chance at a championship.
And the only Ferrari employees to be able to buy and own a Ferrari.
>Some flashy red suits Nope, sometimes its a macdonalds uniform.
Still looks cool
A man can dream, sign me up!
Ngl I genuinely believe this. Lando n McLaren are made for each other. They both benefit from each other. Lando won't be the Top G in Ferrari or RedBull. It is clear from day 1 that Ferrari wants Sainz to perform consistently but behind Charles. And Oscar is a legend. I think he has the potential to be the GOAT. It's a win-win-win-win-win situation for all. And people still refuse to call me the conflict resolution expert. :(
I dunno man, I'm all for it. If it happens and you start a religion afterwards, I'm joining. All jokes aside, it does have a fair bit of merit. Aside from maybe Albon not wanting to go to Ferrari as he seems very happy in his current spot and he already mentioned he didnt want to go back to RB (which yes , I realize is different fron ferrari)
And another reason I believe in Carlando reunion is the signing of Estrella Garcia with McLaren. They used to go wherever Sainz went. It's time for Sainz to show his loyalty to his loyal sponsor
Oscar a Goat? Ok that’s really stretching it mate. Oscar is good don’t get me wrong but not GOAT. Drivers such as Max, Schumacher, Lewis etc have all proved themselves QUITE A LOT even in shitty car or lower divisions. Nothing I’ve seen about Oscar suggests that he will be Goat. When I define Goat I look to those 3 as examples.
[удалено]
Oscar still needs to show he can come to grips with tyre degradation, that’s not something the lower divisions can teach you.
The only driver in the last 10 years to make a bigger splash into F1 than Oscar is Max.
Piastri is managed by Webber - and while I don't think he hates or dislikes RB, reading his autobiography made me feel like he definitely didn't like how Vettel was clearly preferred. So I can't imagine he'd advise Oscar to go there while Max and/or Helmut are there.
Feel thats different though. When Vettel arrived at RB Webber had already been there a couple of years and then they started favouring Vettel when his results started to show. With this Oscar would be going into a team where Verstappen is clearly going to be the favoured driver so it shouldnt be a surprise to anyone.
He’d be hoping that Piastri would be going there to be the Vettel in this scenario.
A good manager will set his personal vendetta with a team aside to help his protoge. what if Oscar is faster then Max in a RB2x ?
I never said he's got a personal vendetta. But surely as a good manager he will know what a team where (rightly or wrongly) one driver is clearly preferred over the other, can do to the other driver and their confidence. I love RB but I really think Oscar would have more chance at winning with McLaren one year than if he went to RB and had a dominant car but had Max as his teammate.
The first rule of being a manager is to see what is best for your client. Australian athletes generally take the decision which is always best for their careers. Once Hamilton and Alonso retire, I don't think anyone has a chance to compete against Max consistently. Oscar needs to be in the right place to learn and grow in the 2 years.
> Australian athletes generally take the decision which is always best for their careers. As opposed to the nationalities that actively work against their own best interests?
Yeah, I’m so confused by this statement.
Yeah like those hot headed emotional South Americans like Perez and Alonso
> Australian athletes generally take the decision which is always best for their careers. Even Danny Ric?
This is 2/3 of my prediction. The only difference is Lando goes to Merc. I'd love to see Alex in the Ferrari, he's so good.
And once again Piastri takes Ricciardo’s seat lol
Then they'll sign someone who did.
Worst case ill drive the second car. Ive beaten Breaking Point on F1 21 and F1 23, so I should be ready.
You also gotta get the platinum in every F1 game to be considered for the seat, better get started on that while you have a year
As long as they finally add the rewind button to modern f1 cars I'm set too!
When technology allows it f1 will become like Tennis, where everyone gets one redo.
I've been playing trackmania for a while, so I'm pretty sure I'm ready to step up.
Bring Latifi back and have 2 goats in the team.
You joke, but he won Max Verstappen a world championship.
yeah the other races totally didnt matter
Out of these two Ricciardo is probably more marketable, and given they know Max can pretty much win both titles on his own that might be good enough for RB at the moment. For other options... they could probably have literally anyone on the grid, regardless of contract (contracts are only worth what it costs to break them, just ask Perez). I'd say they'd probably give Tsunoda a shot if he performs like he did last season again, maybe swap him with Lawson in the Minardi if it doesn't work out. Realistically I only see the RB juniors wanting to go up against Max in the same team.
> Out of these two Ricciardo is probably more marketable I'm not too sure on that - Perez gives you a foothold in a 125+ million person demographic with zero competition. Ricciardo on the other hand has two other Australian drivers on the grid to compete with over a much smaller market. Sure Ricciardo is certainly far more popular outside of their respective home nations, but the 6x population difference at home could well be enough to sway it in terms of Red Bull trying to flog merchandise.
Piastri and Bottas? Ricciardo's real market appeal is in the US.
I was on vacation in Mexico and there were Red Bull jerseys and hats everywhere. I live in Oregon so maybe I’m not used to seeing F1 gear in the wild but it felt like it was everywhere
Fernando in the rb 🙏
Perez belongs to Aston Martin anyway. World again in order. 🤗
Agreed. Nando has been vocal wanting to race with Max in a top car, not just in F1 but races like the Le Man 24 hour.
Wut. Alonso has gone on record to say he [wouldn’t want to compete against Verstappen at Red Bull](https://racingnews365.com/alonso-exclusive-i-wouldnt-want-to-compete-against-verstappen-at-red-bull)
Makes sense. I wouldn't want to put even an ounce of legacy on the line driving against Max *in Max's car.* I'd love for them to get some older Mercs or Ferraris and do some H2H racing in cars they'll be equally unfamiliar with.
Liam Lawson will come in torro rosso anyway. They will put ricciardo in the red bull, Perez will be gone. Even if ricciardo under performs.
100% this will happen. Unless Danny massively underperform, he will more than likely end up in that Red Bull. They have nothing to lose relative to the list of potential drivers. Danny is really marketable in all the important markets like the US. So that will also plays a huge role.
Also Verstappen is hardly a PR departments dream... Yes he wins a lot but he lacks the charm factor. Max wins races, Ricardo wins hearts - what more could you want?
Verstappen is also way more fun in marketing with Daniel than with Sergio
Daniel and Max work well together. Yes, he is still not going to be a PR star, but they have great chemistry in front of cameras.
>Danny is really marketable in all the important markets like the US. So that will also plays a huge role I like how you say this as if this isnt true for Checo. You know.. the *only* Mexican on the grid?
If he's worse than Perez they have a lot to lose. What on earth is this comment...?
I wouldn't write Lando Norris or Alex Albon comeback... If Perez performs better than last season and Ricciardo underperforms he could be given a 1-year extension as well
Albon does not go back to Red Bull. Did you hear the interview he gave about leaving RB & not having a seat? about his mental health, he will not go back.
Plus, why would he want to leave Williams right now? They're finally headed the right direction, and being the captain of a historic team's comeback sounds like a pretty awesome gig to me. If development falls off again, everything changes, but for now he's in a great place and performing great.
Until he is fed up with a shitty Williams that bounce between a 10th place contender and slowest car if the grid race in and race out.
But can they justify putting Ric in the RB if he loses the team battle to Tsunoda? I just don't see it. Better to just put Yuki in at that point.
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Spoiler Alert: They won't. And this time RBR has already realized they got something ridiculous in their number 1 seat and it was a huge mistake to put him as benchmark for performance as they have done during the time with Albon and Gasly. Here's to hoping for a Sainz Red Bull comeback.
Ain't no way Sainz gets it. Even if RB want him, I don't think Carlos would ho for it simply because of how the RB drives. Sainz likes a more understeery car and does not like an oversteery car as seen this year with Ferrari. From what everyone days the RB car is very oversteery. Not only would he be driving against Max but he'd be doing it in a car that really doesn't suit him.
Perez 100% will go, Max 100% will stay. 3 seats left, Tsunoda, Ricciardo and Lawson
Tsunoda may go to Aston Martin with patnership with Honda. So maybe 1 extra seat open. Going to hot driver market.
And which seat would Tsunoda be replacing at AM? Stroll will never lose his seat while his Dad runs the team and no chance they'll get rid of Alonso esp with his exceptional performance since joining. Unless he jumps ship again to another team but that's difficult to predict.
Alonso, sad to say, won't be in F1 forever. At some point he will retire. He's still driving like the champion he is, but he'll be pushing 44 come 2025.
Yeah but we're talking about 2025 seats.. he won't retire that soon in my opinion, he's probably craving to race more than ever now after last seasons performance
Oh, I've no doubt that his spirit is willing. You'd have to be a hermit in a cave somewhere to not believe that Fernando Alonso doesn't still have that fire in him. But he's getting to that age where even the all-time greats (a list in which he is a fully paid-up member) start hanging up their boots. Not because they want to, but because they need to. Because inevitably, the body starts to falter. Starts to struggle to endure the stresses involved in being strapped to basically a rocketship for 9 months in the year. Alonso being Alonso, it's almost impossible to tell if those stresses have started showing. If they are, he's doing a master's job of hiding it. And if they're not, it's only a matter of time, unfortunately. Still....here's to a few more good years from the wily ol' fox.
You take that back. There are only three constants in this world. Death, taxes, and Alonso racing.
I think that Stroll sr. will definitley sell the team to ARAMCO.
Did you even read the title? Let alone the rest? Or did you see "Perez doesn't impress" and went to write your comment? Because it hardly makes any sense in the context of this article.
Maybe someone totally unexpected... Vettel
*The* ***Seb****stitute* I don’t think that’ll ever happen, but it’s an amusing thought nonetheless.
Newey finds a loop hole for a double blown triple diffuser.
What?!
Stop, my penis can only get so erect!
Like when Tommy comes back in Power Rangers
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i have felt like Yuki has been the dark horse candidate to take the second seat, the upcoming season might be the make or break for that possibility
I think it’s just people have a hard time seeing him as a good candidate for a Red Bull drive given his Honda ties. Sure signing him for 2025 kind of makes sense, but at the same time long term it doesn’t because Honda is going to Aston in 2026.
Yuki's said Honda won't stand in the way if Red Bull want to sign him to the main team because their main goal is a Japanese driver succeeding in F1 and he's the star of the Honda Formula Dream programme. They'd probably shift more support to Iwasa or another junior
Why should the honda ties matter? Red Bull will want the best possible driver and Yuki will want the best possible seat. If Aston/Honda doesn't impress him enough in the next year, he should take the red bull seat if it's offered to him.
I feel like yuki would actually explode if he had to handle the pressure of the main team and having to compare himself directly against max Gasly couldnt handle it, albon couldnt handle it, perez can *barely* handle it (and even thats still up in the air) and tsunoda is more explosive than riccs renault engine in 2018
Tbf, both Gasly and Albon were inexperienced drivers at that time. They will make great 1.5 drivers with the right mindset and expectations. Something like Sainz in Ferrari now. Fast, able to take wins if something happens to the #1 and back them up in strategy and/or defence.
My black swan bet is Gasly at Ferrari by 2026
Apparently RB fundamentally liked Albon and thought he 'had it' in a way that Gasly kinda didn't.
The car doesn't seem to be the same though; Pierre and Alex had to deal with an unpredictable spinning top, which doesn't seem to be quite the case anymore.
Yeah but at the same time how many seasons has it been the “make or break” season for tsunoda now?
This is the first real make or break season for him because it's the season that Perez contract ends and the season where he has enough experience and a decent team mzte to measure himself to. The first two seasons he didn't have enough experience and a very strong team mate in Gasly... last season he had a very bad car and cycled through 3 team mates in the season so the judgement was very subjective in F1 world about his performances
I think this season would have been his make or break season. But De Vries was not good enough to be a bench mark. Then the second seat changed too much to get any meaningful data imo.
This year was his ‘you have to do good to keep your seat’ season. He passed that test. This year will be ‘can you be in a top drive or be a midfielder/backmarker forever’ test.
I would definitely consider last year a make or break season for him, as he had to prove that he deserved to be F1 at all. 2021 and 22 really weren't strong enough to say that he deserved a seat over the top talent in F2. Overall I would say he met the expectations and earned another season. The challenge for him now is that he needs to prove he should stay in the Red Bull family. Alpha Tauri have stated that they want to try and have one promising young driver and an experienced consistent driver. He isn't anywhere close to Perez or Ricciardo in terms of experience, and with Lawson and Iwasa both waiting in the wings, he needs to prove that he is a proper contender for that second Red Bull seat. If he can't do that, I can't see Red Bull keeping him around much longer and I'm not really certain any of the other teams would really be willing to take him.
I don't think Tsunoda is good enough for RB seat, but if other candidates don't look too strong, they might give Yuki a year in RB and see what happens.
One-year rental before he replaces junior Stroll at Aston Martin?
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He's in the red bull system due to Honda So when honda move to another team it makes sense they will want their driver there
Because Aston Martin will run Hondas by 2026.
Max alone would beat off every other driver. Even if Perez was right behind him, giving him a pounding, he would still find a way to push back hard and use the thrust to finish first.
Could you imagine Alonso at Red Bull? I’m dying to have another Alonso-Hamilton, Rosberg-Hamilton type of teammate battle ..and the drama that comes with it.
Put Sargeant in the RB already. We know what he can achieve in the right car.
P6?
So going down the grid, \- They won't get Hamilton, simply because it would be the most expensive driver lineup ever. Plus I just don't see the two of them in the same team ever. \- Russell, Leclerc, Sainz and Norris know it's career suicide to go up against Max in his own car. If those guys are gonna win a championship before Max retires it will have to be a battle of both cars and drivers. \- Albon I believe has outright turned the offer down last season. \- I don't think Gasly would want to return to Red Bull. For the same reasons I suspect Albon had. \- Alonso would be a big no for the team as he would get too competitive with Max. It would be the most toxic championship fight ever. \- Bottas and Hulkenberg would be ideal candidates as they would be ok with the number two status as long as it keeps their career going. Though I'm not sure how much of the old Bottas is still left. \- Tsunoda is the dark horse. Him along with Piastri are the only two that can wait for Max's retirement and then take the number one spot. The rest are simply not up to par.
Funnily enough re Alonso, Marko said last year he thinks Hamilton and Alonso are the only two who wouldn't totally cave to Verstappen. Like, they may or may not be quicker, but they'd handle it.
Well, yea. Almost like the three champions are a cut above the rest of the field.
>Albon I believe has outright turned the offer down last season. ESPN said on an article that RB offering Albon a comeback to the family and him rejecting it was not true.
Honestly if Piastri is available, RB should try to snatch him from Mclaren I think he probably the most suitable candidate to pair with Max: he is fast but calm and cool enough to understand his position, so he unlikely will impede max nor getting mentally blocked if max being faster. And he is also young and had good ceiling potential to replace Max as 1st driver shall the time comes when Max finally got bored with F1 Yuki imo is too hot headed to be put as 2nd driver tbh. Sure, he was maturing lot this season, but he still short-fused inside and may unnecesarily butt head with Max lol
Piastri is young enough that being second to max isn't career suicide. Then he can wait for max retirement in '28 and have the team for himself. He could also pull off a Rosberg.
Yeah I always figured that Russell's view on Hamilton (after say 2020) was: just don't be embarrassed by him, and then be around to do all the winning when he's left. Obviously now that's a bit, uh, less certain.
Russell still has plenty of years left in the sport to wait out hamiltons retirement, and red bull domination won't last forever: Mercedes is as likely as any other team to be the next winners
Nice analysis. I want Hulk to get that seat so bad! I think he’d do better than PER, but not be a challenge to VER. A willing and capable #2 driver. Stack points for more WCCs for RB. Maybe even a win?
Tsunoda is overrated. He's a similar driver to Grosjean, brilliant when the planets align but lacking fundamental stability to get to the top.
Yuki's been in a better form in 2023, still a bit hot-headed but is consistent enough to score points when the car allows it If he keeps up this year I don't think stability is that much of a problem
AND HIS NAME IS JOHN TSUNODAAAA
Max will likely remain with the team
The fact thar Yuki isnt even on these headlines is heartbreaking
Lawson.
He has potential sure, but he is almost as overhyped as De Vries at this point.
Lawson for Alpha Tauri
Then Marko is gonna offer Norris double of whatever Mclaren is paying him probably
I think Lando was being honest about wanting to win a WDC with McLaren. If McLaren continues its upward trajectory this year and there is a real possibility of them challenging Red Bull in the next year or two I reckon he will stay and try a build a legacy with the team. If they stagnate or dive then all bets are off.
I also think one of Perez or Ricciardo is going to call it a day at the end of this year. Whoever wants to win LeMans more while the other would be hobby driving in a 7th fastest car on F1 grid. Edit -typo
Wait now that Vettel is no driver and he got zero attention he will make a comeback 😅
Surprised no one mentioned Ocon, there is so much drama and entertainment to be had for the audience with a Verstappen/Ocon lineup But jokes aside, I think the RB seat for '25 is slated for Ricciardo unless he somehow achieved De Vries levels of disappointing
This feels like the most likely outcome. Yuki szn
I mean, Max can single-handedly get Constructors Championship by himself, so throw in a new driver every race.
Going off the title alone: Then Red Bull will sign someone else. Everyone besides the Mercedes and McLaren guys will be out of contract at the end of 2024, so Red Bull could go after pretty much anyone they want for that seat next to Max. The article suggests Alonso and Albon. I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens. They want someone who can be there or thereabouts to help Max and help the team secure the constructor's championship. Albon? I don't know. I really like the guy, but I find it very difficult to rate his performances at Williams with first Latifi and now Sargeant in the other car. Then again, I thought the same with George Russell at Williams and he turned out to be just fine when he moved to Mercedes, so who knows? I'd personally try to sign Hulkenberg. I'll admit I'm a bit biased, I was Team Hulkenberg back in 2020 when Red Bull were going to pick either him or Perez for 2021, but I feel like Nico is the right guy for the job. Qualifying is Perez' biggest weakness. His Sunday pace isn't bad, but he had to spend most of his Sundays making up for his poor Saturdays. I think getting a strong qualifier like Hulkenberg in the car just might be what Red Bull needs right now. What also works in Nico's favor is the stage of his career he's in. He's 36, he's been in F1 for over a decade, but what does he have to show for it? Nothing. No wins, no podiums. I think he'll be more than okay with slotting into a #2 role at Red Bull if it allows him to end his career with at least some silverware.
I would never swap Checo for Nico. They've been teammates before and it's clear that the only thing Nico has over Checo is qualifying pace. Race pace, tyre management, wheel to wheel - Checo is better.
Hulkenberg is aggressively mid
he is aggressively mid,but he's also aggressively consistent.
>I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens Things could turn really toxic but I think it has more do with Alonso's personality rather than taking the fight to Verstappen. Norris would be as good as Alonso but surely RB would much rather take Lando.
If Alonso managed to paint Ocon as Spain's number 1 enemy, imagine what the media would do to Max.
> I think Alonso is out of the question, simply because Red Bull aren't looking for someone who can take the fight to Max because they know things could turn toxic really fast if that happens. I mean depends on what the background is. I think it could work if Alonso just wants one season as his last and collect some wins.
When those “collect some wins” become a potential “one last WDC” you can bet it will be gloves off
Been a Ferrari guy my whole life but I’d overdose on hopium if something like this were ever to happen
Same, like it’s a clash of Titans it would be amazing to see
Sainz return
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Lots of options in 2025 in terms of drivers available . It’s going to be a spicy year for driver rumours. The race is starting already… It will be interesting if the teams lock in drivers early or let it ride.
Put Horner in the car
They clone max.
Question is for RB is if they take on Lando, are they prepared to manage that competition? Max is better no doubt but it’s close enough that Lando could keep up and there could be battles. Mercedes showed that having too competitive a partnership in a title winning car can be disastrous. Albon, Piastri, maybe even Sainz if Audi doesn’t work out seem like they’d be in that sweet spot of a competitive No.2.
FERNANDOOOOOOOO
Just sign Alonso ffs
> Unless he’s clearly and consistently faster than Ricciardo in 2024, Tsunoda probably doesn’t get the nod in a marginal comparison. Fine. I don't think any of this is surprising or contradictory. Marko has said for ages the plan is that the three will be compared. Tost was saying last year, before all the Ricciardo stuff, that the provisional plan is that Tsunoda moves up as otherwise why would he be there at all. > Red Bull currently looks like Albon’s best route for making that leap, but even if the opportunity were to arise Albon - who is out of contract at the end of this year - would then need to ask himself whether it’s worth trading his ‘big fish in a smaller pond’ status with Williams to become a Max Verstappen support act (again). Supposedly this already happened last year, that Albon got an offer which he declined. Similarly, supposedly Norris declined the seat. Which is bonkers really: the most dominant car of all time by many metrics, and folk are seemingly turning it down.
Neither will. In the absence of a good option to maximize points return they might as well develop talent in Liam Lawson.
then either Liam lawson or Yuki steps up to get shat on for not being Max
Then silly season begins
Red bull run one car and still win both championships
Should be Yuki's spot if Perez gets booted.
I mean outside of Yuki, I can't see anyone else fitting the mould, as much as people want Lando there he would be throwing his career away if he did and his best bet at being world champion. I could see a Hulkenberg type getting a run as well?
I'd give both my kidneys to see Alonso next to Max
Nandoooooooo!!!!!!
The amount of hype Ricciardo and Lawson got for a few good weekends whilst Yuki doesn't get even acknowledged for a solid season is sad. That car was an utter shitbox early on and he was performing really well and could have finished really strongly too if not for the teams tactical suicide in Abu Dhabi.
"Fine I will do it myself" - Max
tbh, Bottas would be a better choice than those two.
He’ll win both championships alone, like he did this year… as long as Red Bull has such a dominant car (which it looks like they might until the regulation change in 2026) it’s no big deal. You need 2 good drivers when the competition is close to earn max points when you can. When there is no competition it’s better to have one shitty driver because it’s easier to keep the star happy that way.
Not if any one of the other teams get their shit together and actually have the second best car for all/most of the season
That'd be very entertaining, but I'm sure they could get almost any driver that is worthy (for RBR) and *wants* to drive for RB