Tsunoda floor upgrade hints at Red Bull progress beyond Verstappen

Yuki Tsunoda's breakthrough performance at Spa is being seen as another sign of Red Bull's revival under new leadership—this time further down the grid.

The Japanese driver qualified seventh on Saturday, a surprise result that Red Bull senior advisor Dr Helmut Marko credited in part to a late decision to give Tsunoda a long-awaited car upgrade.

“We’re very happy to start with,” Marko told ORF. “It’s the first time we’ve had four cars in the top ten.”

That quartet included Verstappen, Tsunoda, Liam Lawson and rookie Isack Hadjar—marking a shift in form after weeks of uneven results across Red Bull’s two teams.

“Tsunoda hasn’t had any updates yet, unlike Max,” Marko noted to Motorsport-Magazin.com. “But if nothing happens to him in the sprint race, he’ll get new parts too.”

In the end, the update arrived just in time. “We fitted his car with the new underbody before qualifying,” Marko confirmed. “That’s always a risk, and it was getting tight as time went on, but we pushed hard and everyone’s efforts paid off.”

Team principal Laurent Mekies said the decision came down to detail-oriented risk-taking: “We updated Yuki’s car just before qualifying because we always try our best when it comes to details. We decided to take a risk. The result is the effort of all the team members.”

Tsunoda instantly felt the difference. “A little more grip, literally,” he said. “It’s now clear how much of a gap we’ve had over the last few races. The old one was more sensitive. Once you slide, it just doesn’t recover. With this one, you can be more aggressive.”

“There are still some parts to go, but the floor was big enough anyway. It feels much better,” he added. “I can’t say which parts, but there’s still a difference.”

He told Viaplay the upgrade caught him by surprise: “It was a nice surprise for me! A late birthday present perhaps, I don’t know. I heard about it just before qualifying.”

Tsunoda admitted Verstappen will remain the priority: “It’s not always easy, not for the team either, and that’s understandable. They’re fighting for the championship. Max is the one in front, the best driver on the grid.”

Still uncertain about his own future with Honda set to partner Aston Martin in 2026, Tsunoda remains focused on closing the gap. “I’m trying to do that, so I can hopefully get close to him in the future.”]]>