When Yuki Tsunoda was asked at the last race in China whether he would be comfortable stepping up to Red Bull in front of his adoring Japanese fans next week – as outlandish a proposition it seemed at the time – he did not flinch.
“Yeah, why not, 100% per cent,” he said, salivating at the prospect of a shot at the front of the grid. “The car is faster.” And so, in an unprecedented swap just two rounds into a 24-race season, the popular Japanese driver receives a shot at F1’s poisoned chalice: a seat alongside Max Verstappen.
