Tsunoda will start his fifth season in F1 in 2025 with Racing Bulls, the team with which he’s been throuhgout his career to date.
He will partner Isack Hadjar as the senior figure within Racing Bulls, the Frenchman joining in place of Red Bull-bound Liam Lawson.
Lawson was promoted ahead of Tsunoda after offering a close challenge during their six races together in 2025.
Given Tsunoda was in his fourth season of F1, the logic followed that there is greater growth potential in Lawson, hence he was given the nod.
It’s a position Steiner has questioned, reasoning that it would have been more prudent to promote the Japanese driver for a season to properly assess his potential.
“I don’t think that was the perfect choice,” Steiner told GPblog.
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“Everything was a compromise. It’s one of the choices.
“I’m in the opinion maybe to know that [Tsunoda] should have been given the chance. I don’t say deserved because you don’t deserve anything, I always say.
“But 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.”
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Steiner argued that there is potentially more to come from Tsunoda, but that he’s reached the ceiling of what Racing Bulls is able to do for him.
To develop, the Italian reasoned, Tsunoda needed to be promoted into the senior team.
Instead, retaining him at Racing Bulls suggests that, when the opportunity arises, the organisation will drop him in favour of the next young prospect.
“He’s doing more of the same, but he’s not exposed to do, to make the step,” Steiner reasoned of Tsunoda’s tenure at Racing Bulls and ability to develop.
“It’s like he’s not given the opportunity, so why keep him around? I don’t know.
“His fifth year in the junior team, right? Is it a junior team, or what is it?”
As something of a consolation, Tsunoda has been named reserve driver for the senior Red Bull team for this season, ironically filling the role performed by Lawson last year.
While fast enough to have earned a place on the grid on merit, Tsunoda’s pathway to F1 was helped by power unit supplier Honda.
The Japanese automaker will switch to Aston Martin from 2026, the Silverstone-based squad set to become the factory team as Red Bull partners with Ford in building its own power units.
It’s likely Honda’s switch will see Tsunoda follow suit given there is little else to keep him within the Red Bull operation.
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