Formula One F1 - Qatar Grand Prix - Lusail International Circuit, Lusail, Qatar - November 29, 2024 RB's Yuki Tsunoda arrives before practice REUTERS/Rula Rouhana
DOHA (Reuters) - Yuki Tsunoda has taken a big step in Formula One this year and is ready for a bigger team and a faster car, his RB boss Laurent Mekies said on Friday with the Japanese set for a post-season test at Red Bull.
The test will be the driver's first with a team who have previously seemed sceptical of his character but could now be looking to replace Mexican Sergio Perez alongside four-times champion Max Verstappen.
"I think he has made a step this season that nobody could forecast and it's something he should be proud of," said Mekies, whose team have historically served as a feeder for the main Red Bull outfit.
"Of course I think he's ready to get a faster car. We are hoping to provide him with this faster car, but of course I think he's ready for a faster car and a faster team or a bigger team," he continued.
"It's one of our key DNA aspects for this team to be able to grow our drivers and to make them attractive enough so that Red Bull Racing want to have them.
"So we are very happy that you have this test and I'm confident he will perform well."
Tsunoda has scored 30 of RB's 46 points this season, providing the backbone of a team that replaced Australian Daniel Ricciardo after Singapore in September and brought in New Zealand's Liam Lawson.
Lawson has yet to be told which Red Bull team he will be driving for in 2025.
"All I can tell you is that the steps he (Tsunoda) has been doing this year have been a surprise to everyone and hopefully the surprise has also been for Red Bull Racing," said Mekies.
"We are in a business where everybody looks at the results and the second a driver starts to perform or to outperform compared to the expectations, then everybody will then change their opinions very, very fast.
"So I think for Yuki, it's all about continuing to perform at a mega high level on the track."
Tsunoda qualified third in Brazil last month and seventh in Las Vegas last Saturday.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
