Honda says Tsunoda free to join Cadillac or Haas in 2026

Honda says Tsunoda free to join Cadillac or Haas in 2026
© Imago
Yuki Tsunoda is free to race for a non-Honda-affiliated team in Formula 1 next season, according to Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe.

Yuki Tsunoda is free to race for a non-Honda-affiliated team in Formula 1 next season, according to Honda Racing Corporation president Koji Watanabe.

As Honda prepares to end its support of Red Bull after 2025 and shift focus to Aston Martin from 2026, the future of its longtime protege Tsunoda is under growing scrutiny.

Although speculation has linked the Japanese driver with a future reserve role at Aston Martin, both race seats for 2026 - with Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll - are already secured. "There are no discussions about a change," Watanabe told as-web.jp.

Tsunoda, like Liam Lawson and Sergio Perez, has struggled to match Max Verstappen’s dominance in the Red Bull garage this season.

"Looking at the results from the outside, my honest impression is that they are struggling more than we expected," Watanabe admitted.

"However, after keeping in contact with Yuki and listening to him, it seems that he is taking a more positive view than we thought. If the car's fighting power can be improved and they can seize the opportunity, I believe they can still do well.

"To that end, we at HRC will continue to provide them with our full support going forward as always."

Honda’s support for Red Bull will end after the season finale in Abu Dhabi, fuelling rumours that Red Bull could replace Tsunoda with junior driver Isack Hadjar during the August break, but Watanabe was quick to deny that possibility.

"First of all, there has been no discussion about changing during the summer break," he said. "What we are hearing is that just because his performance is a little poor, they will not start discussions about changing right away, but will take a long-term view.

"I know there are various rumours, but I confirmed with the team that basically Yuki will race for Red Bull until the end of this season.

"And if he can achieve results somewhere in the second half of the season, I think that will expand his possibilities for the future."

One of those possibilities could include a move to Cadillac’s 2026 F1 entry, which will use Ferrari engines.

Asked if that would pose a conflict for Honda, Watanabe replied: "No, it would not." Tsunoda has also been loosely linked with Haas, a team that is increasing its ties with Honda’s Japanese rival, Toyota.

Asked about the Haas-Tsunoda connection, Watanabe responded: "There's no problem. It's not Team Toyota."

ID:577555:1false2false3false: from db desktop :LenBod:collect3534:
Written by
GMM F1

Click here for more stories about Max Verstappen

Click here for more stories about Red Bull

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
rhs 2.0


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!