Through the first ten rounds of the season, Tsunoda finished 12th on average and scored a total of 19 points — courtesy of strong showings in Australia, Japan, Miami, Imola and Monaco. Conversely, over the same period, Ricciardo finished 14th on average and scored just nine points — concerning those on the pitwall.
Although there were brief signs of a resurgence via top ten appearances in Austria and Belgium, the Aussie’s struggles mostly continued and with talented youngsters on the sideline, Red Bull soon made an inevitable decision.
Immediately after the Singapore GP, it was announced that Ricciardo would be replaced by talented youngster Liam Lawson for the remainder of the season. The Kiwi had impressed as a reserve — scoring on multiple occassions in 2023 after stepping in for an injured Ricciardo over a five race stint — and was now being given the full-time chance that many believed he deserved.
Lawson duly delivered, as he qualified 19th but finished ninth at COTA before capturing another two points during a chaotic wet weather race in Sao Paulo.
As the season finale neared, RB found itself in the hunt for sixth in the constructors’ standings — alongside midfield rivals Haas and Alpine. However, back-to-back pointless finishes in Qatar and Abu Dhabi saw the Faenza outfit slip down the running order and ultimately finished eighth in the constructors’ standings.
2025: A better future led by Red Bull
Hadjar isn’t the only new addition to RB in 2025
Red Bull
Red Bull possesses a unique advantage on the grid as the owner and operator of two F1 constructors, and the teams will continue to work more closely together in 2025 to cut costs and in an effort to improve the performance of RB.
Under the supervision of new CEO Peter Bayer and team principal Laurent Mekies, the team took steps forward in 2024 and will look to do the same again in 2025. But, despite the use of Red Bull’s gearbox, suspension and power unit, Mekies wants to manage expectations.
“There was a level of hype at the beginning of last year [after the announcement was made], where I guess people felt there could be some magic in the fact that somebody takes a gearbox and suspension,” Mekies told Autosport.
“But it’s not a new regulation. It’s been there for 15 years, and you have never seen guys that will be taking these items from somebody else, suddenly fighting for the championship, or fighting for the top three or the top four, it just never happened.”
As for the drivers, Tsunoda showed moments of genius over the course of the 2024 season and will be determined to prove his worth after Red Bull selected Lawson to partner Verstappen at the front of the grid in 2025. Similarly, after an impressive year in F2, Isack Hadjar will also be aiming for a quick start, with the hope of putting himself in the Red Bull frame too.
2024 Racing Bulls F1 driver line-up
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| Isack Hadjar | Yuki Tsunoda |
- Isack Hadjar becomes latest Red Bull junior to be promoted into F1 seat
- Yuki Tsunoda was re-signed on another one year deal for 2025
Key personnel
Team principal: Laurent Mekies
Hired from Ferrari, Laurent Mekies hopes to bring new direction to RB
Getty Images
Former racing director and engineer for Ferrari, Laurent Mekies, became RB’s latest team principal in 2024 — replacing long-term boss Franz Tost.
Working closely with Red Bull and new Racing Bulls CEO Peter Bayer, Mekies has aimed to put the Faenza squad back on a positive track after the team struggled with the latest technical regulation changes.
The Frenchman has overseen the creation of a new infrastructure, that sees RB designers work on Red Bull’s Milton Keynes campus, and the introduction of Red Bull parts, which could make the team increasingly competitive in the years to come.
“I don’t think that in Formula One, any of us expect to turn up, change everything, and get results immediately,” said Mekies, reflecting on his first season as team principal of RB. “It doesn’t work like that, unfortunately, but are we confident we got the right people in. Yes, 100% Are we confident we have the right basis to go and hit the target that we are being given.”