Red Bull will announce its 2026 lineup following the Qatar race, rather than at Abu Dhabi.

      "Just one more week of patience"

      Red Bull’s eagerly anticipated driver announcement will come sooner than expected, as Laurent Mekies has disclosed that the team will reveal its 2026 lineup right after this weekend's Qatar GP. Dr. Helmut Marko had previously suggested the decision would be made only after the Abu Dhabi race, but Mekies informed reporters in Las Vegas: "We will announce our lineup immediately after Qatar. Just one more week of patience," he said with a smile.

      This news has increased tension within the garage, especially for Yuki Tsunoda, whose future remains uncertain. The Japanese driver confessed to feeling "nervous" about his situation, with the possibility of ending up without a race seat, perhaps relegated to an Aston Martin reserve role at best. "It's just a similar situation to last year or even two years ago, so honestly, I’ve become accustomed to it. That’s part of Formula 1," Tsunoda remarked.

      "The positive aspect is that I have faced this situation many times before. I understand what I need to do for the upcoming races. Ultimately, those decisions are beyond my control, right?" Despite a disappointing race—attributable to an erroneous setup that the team acknowledged—Tsunoda showed promising signs in Las Vegas. "Several times—FP1, FP2, FP3—during multiple laps, I outperformed Max in performance runs," he stated. "I believe that’s something we haven’t seen in a while. Obviously, one of his strengths is elevating the car's performance in qualifying, but I also felt confident that I could do better than in recent weekends.

      "These things occur. I think people noticed it. However, what I really want is a result—and so does the team. We cannot keep pointing fingers like this. We need to clean things up for Qatar." Despite Tsunoda’s development, it is widely believed that Isack Hadjar is the leading contender for the 2026 Red Bull seat alongside Max Verstappen.

      In contrast to Tsunoda's anxiety, Hadjar expressed that he feels no nerves about the process. "Actually, I’d prefer to know by the end of the year," he told reporters. "Because it’s more annoying than anything—the speculation. Twelve months ago I was somewhat uncertain, that’s true. I had an idea, but this year I’m in a stronger position. I know I’ll be in Formula 1 next year. Last year I was unsure of my path, so I’m a lot less anxious now."