Honda boss put Yuki Tsunoda on the spot over ‘cancelled’ IndyCar plans
Yuki Tsunoda returned with Racing Bulls for three races
Honda president Koji Watanabe asked Yuki Tsunoda why he was considering testing for an IndyCar team when his goal is to rejoin the Formula 1 grid next season.
Watanabe spoke with the Japanese driver just days before his reported Meyer Shank Racing test was scheduled.
Koji Watanabe questions Yuki Tsunoda’s potential IndyCar move
RACER reported earlier this month that Red Bull reserve driver Tsunoda could potentially join the line-up in a one-day test with Meyer Shank Racing at Barber Motorsports Park on October 26.
Nothing, though, came of that.
Watanabe was asked about Tsunoda’s IndyCar talks, but while he says Tsunoda and his management are free to decide what happens next for the driver, he did question why Tsunoda was looking at the IndyCar series.
He, however, didn’t know until after the fact that Tsunoda’s test had been cancelled.
“Tsunoda is already an independent professional racing driver, so we recognise that negotiations were not between us, but between Tsunoda’s camp and Meyer-Shank Racing,” he told as-web.
“Therefore, I later heard that the test was cancelled.
“We met in the paddock [at the United States GP] and had a somewhat longer conversation with Yuki.
“I told him, ‘Why not just do what you want? If you can stay in F1, that’s best, and if not, let’s talk again then.'”
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Tsunoda is trying to find his way back onto the Formula 1 grid for 2027, having been demoted to a reserve driver role with Red Bull and Racing Bulls.
While Racing Bulls, who he raced for at the Dutch, Italian and Spanish Grands Prix when he substituted for the Red Bull-loaned Liam Lawson, has yet to confirm either of its drivers, the team is said to be deciding between Lawson and Nikola Tsolov as Arvid Lindblad’s teammate.
That leaves Cadillac amidst rumours that Valtteri Bottas’ seat could be on the line.
Tsunoda told PlanetF1.com and other media outlets in Monza that Formula 1 remained his priority.
“My mentality is always in Formula 1,” he said. “My main goal is to always be driving in Formula 1 and have success. So that’s always there no matter what.
“But I also don’t want to be staying in the garage [as a reserve driver] for two years. I want to drive as well.
“So if something doesn’t potentially happen or I can’t find a seat for next year, I’ll have to do other series.
“But I’ve always thought until the moment I hit the track next year, my mentality will always be Formula 1.”
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