Formula 1
Tsunoda splits with managers amid missed Red Bull promotion
The Japanese driver, overlooked by Red Bull in favour of Liam Lawson, has reshuffled his management team
Oleg Karpov
Edited: Feb 28, 2025, 10:48 AM
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Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Yuki Tsunoda reshuffled his management team amid losing out on a Red Bull promotion to Liam Lawson for the 2025 Formula 1 campaign.
The Racing Bulls driver was previously managed by Mario Miyakawa and Luis Alvarez, before parting ways with both shortly after the 2024 season ended in December.
Tsunoda is now being managed by Mexican Diego Menchaca, who contested European single-seaters until 2018 before switching to sportscars.
He has competed in the International GT Open for the past two years having finished runner-up in 2023, but from 2025 he will focus entirely on driver management as he also works with F3’s Noah Stromsted.
"I am not working [with] Mario anymore, and Luis as well," Tsunoda confirmed to Motorsport.com. "I'm really happy with Diego.
“He's motivated, definitely. Once we decided to work together, he immediately went to Helmut's [Marko, Red Bull advisor] office to build a relationship. That kind of effort, I really appreciate - and obviously, Helmut did too.
"They already have a good relationship, which is a good start. But in the end, the most important thing is to perform on track, which will make Diego’s life easier."
Isack Hadjar and Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
The 2025 F1 season will be Tsunoda’s fifth in the series, all coming with Red Bull’s sister squad which has raced under the AlphaTauri, RB and now Racing Bulls guises since the 24-year-old’s debut.
Red Bull has never seriously considered Tsunoda for a promotion to its main squad, despite outperforming his past three team-mates in Nyck de Vries, Daniel Ricciardo and Lawson.
The decision to promote Lawson for 2025 sparked mixed reactions in the paddock, but the 23-year-old was long tipped to replace Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s team-mate even before the Mexican’s departure was officially confirmed.
So Tsunoda will now partner rookie Isack Hadjar at Racing Bulls and he will start the campaign as the Italian outfit’s clear number one driver after finishing a career-best 12th in the 2024 standings.
"Yuki last year did a step I think none of us was expecting,” said Racing Bulls team boss Laurent Mekies during 2025 pre-season testing in Bahrain.
"[He] did a big step forward in terms of speed, in terms of maturity, in terms of technical feedback – and I think if there is another step like that in Yuki this year, it's going to be really, really interesting!
"So in terms of what would a good year look like for him, it’s to see another step of the same magnitude of what we've seen last year."
Tsunoda’s future beyond 2025, however, remains uncertain. Speaking to the media shortly after Lawson’s promotion was announced, Horner questioned whether it "makes sense" to keep Tsunoda in the Red Bull family if he is not in contention for a senior team seat this year.
If Red Bull releases him at the end of the season, Tsunoda’s options appear limited. He was in talks with Haas last year and was also being considered by Sauber, but Red Bull opted to extend his contract for another season.
Since then, both teams have locked in their driver line-ups for the next few years, leaving Tsunoda with few obvious alternatives should he find himself out of a seat for 2026.
Photos from the Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Bahrain Pre-Season Testing - Day 3
Formula 1
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Read Also:
Formula 1Are there enough reasons to justify Lawson's Red Bull deal?
Formula 1Tsunoda: I want to stay within Red Bull in F1 2026
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