Honda's top officials are strongly supporting Yuki Tsunoda as a potential replacement for Sergio Perez at Red Bull Racing in 2025.
Most analysts agree that Red Bull's leadership, including Christian Horner and Dr. Helmut Marko, have already decided to part ways with Perez. Current negotiations reportedly center on resolving the financial terms of the Mexican driver's existing contract.
2016 world champion Nico Rosberg recently claimed Perez's management is demanding a $16 million termination fee, but former F1 engineer Kees van de Grint believes the true cost could be much higher.
"I think the buyout sum is 75 million euros," Van de Grint said. "They have to buy out two years of his contract."
While Liam Lawson is widely regarded as the top candidate to replace Perez, Tsunoda, 24, brings more experience to the table. However, concerns about his temperament and his ties to Honda—who will partner with Aston Martin from 2026—have raised questions about his candidacy.
Despite this, Tsunoda was recently given an opportunity to test the 2024 Red Bull car following pressure from Honda.
"We were able to realise his request to participate in the test," confirmed Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) president Koji Watanabe. "I have heard that he was very satisfied."
Watanabe revealed that he discussed Tsunoda's future with Christian Horner in Abu Dhabi.
"On Saturday I had various discussions with Christian Horner about the drivers for next season and beyond," he said. "As I always say, the team has the right to decide on the driver, so our opinion is merely for reference.
"But from the HRC side, we believe that Tsunoda has the ability to be promoted to Red Bull and should be one of the candidates. All we could do is provide an opportunity for him to show his abilities to the world, which is why I asked that he participate in this test."
Tsunoda's test performance reportedly impressed Red Bull's engineers, with Watanabe noting the valuable feedback he provided.
"He very clearly analysed the differences between the RB car and the Red Bull car and gave the team very useful advice and comments on that basis," Watanabe said.
Another prominent supporter of Tsunoda's candidature is former F1 driver Takuma Sato, who now serves as an executive advisor for Honda Racing Corporation.
"It's up to the team of course," Sato said. "But Yuki said that his driving style suits the Red Bull car, with its sharp front end, so I think he had a very good test. Now, all we can do is pray."
