Verstappen reveals key differences between him and his former Red Bull teammate

Max Verstappen has spoken about the significant, yet seemingly insignificant differences in the setup of the cars he and Yuki Tsunoda raced during their joint tenure at Red Bull.

Tsunoda joined Red Bull ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix. In 22 races and five sprints, the Japanese driver scored only 30 points, while Verstappen earned 385 points. Tsunoda’s best result was sixth place at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Verstappen, on the other hand, won eight races and finished the season just two points behind champion Lando Norris, making a strong breakthrough after the summer break.

Previously, Verstappen’s former teammates Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Sergio Perez and Liam Lawson have repeatedly stated that adapting to the Dutchman’s environment is a difficult task. Verstappen prefers a very sharp nose to attack corners with precision, which is not everyone’s cup of tea.

Commenting on working with Tsunoda, Verstappen stated that the Japanese pilot still chose a slightly different balance in the car.

“Finally, Yuki came and said that it was still not easy to drive our car. They are trying to drive with my settings, but every driver has his own style.”

In terms of settings, Yuki always rode with a little more understeer, but over time we moved in the same direction. Especially in the second half of the season, the philosophy was much the same; “His car just had a little more bottom end.”

Verstappen also emphasized the importance of detail and work throughout the race weekend.

“The difference depends on how you structure the weekend and how you work with your engineer. These are all little things. I wasn’t too happy after free practice in Abu Dhabi either, but thanks to minimal changes we got two tenths of a second. And on the current grid, that’s a huge advantage.”

In the 2026 season, the four-time champion will partner Isak Hajjar, who is having an outstanding season with the youth team.