Former Haas team principal, Guenther Steiner has criticised Red Bull for not giving Yuki Tsunoda a chance in their main team, saying the Japanese driver should have been given at least one season to prove himself.

Instead, Red Bull chose to promote Liam Lawson to race alongside Max Verstappen in 2025, leaving Tsunoda to stay with RB (formerly AlphaTauri) for another year, despite his strong performances.

Steiner, who is known for being very honest about what he thinks, believes Red Bull made the wrong decision.

“I don’t think that was the perfect choice,” he told GPblog.

“Everything was a compromise, it’s one of [those] choices. I’m in the opinion that [Tsunoda] should have been given the chance.”

While he doesn’t think any driver automatically “deserves” a seat, he argues Tsunoda had earned an opportunity.

“Would have been a better bet, say we put him in the car one year, and see how he’s doing. If he’s not good, let him go.

“Now he’s sitting another year in the Racing Bull, and it’s not motivational for the guy as well.”

Tsunoda’s frustration is understandable. He had the opportunity to test a contemporary Red Bull F1 car in Abu Dhabi post-season test and reportedly felt he had done enough to earn a step up. However, Christian Horner justified the decision by stating that Lawson was simply the better option.

This is also not the first time Red Bull has made a tough call on drivers. In the past, both Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon were promoted to the senior team but dropped soon after when they couldn’t match Verstappen’s level.

Steiner also questioned Red Bull’s long-term intentions with Tsunoda. If the team doesn’t see a future for him at the top level, why keep him in the programme at all?

“It’s like he’s not given the opportunity, so why keep him around? I don’t know,” he said.

“His fifth year in the junior team, right? Is it a junior team, or what is it?”

For Tsunoda, 2025 could be a crucial year. With Lawson now at Red Bull and Isack Hadjar stepping up from Formula 2 to join him at RB, Tsunoda will need to prove himself again if he wants to stay in the Red Bull programme—or find a future elsewhere in Formula 1.