Where every Red Bull Racing driver finished in their debut race with the team

When Yuki Tsunoda starts the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, he will become the 14th driver to compete for Red Bull Racing in a Formula 1 race. The pressure will be immense not only because he’s suddenly been promoted to the A-team, but add in the fact that he’s replacing Liam Lawson after just two races and that this is all happening around his home race. In the end, a points result would be satisfactory, but where would it stack up against past Red Bull drivers in their first outing with the team? 

Starting with Red Bull Racing’s inaugural season 20 years ago, in 2005, here’s where the team’s 13 previous drivers placed in their F1 debut — ordered from best to worse (based on finishing position):

Max Verstappen: 1st in the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix

Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing, Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st Position, and the Red Bull team celebrate his first and record breaking F1 win

Photo by: Andrew Hone / Motorsport Images

It should surprise no one that the four-time Formula 1 World Champion won in his very first start with Red Bull. But just to make it even more impressive, it came as part of a mid-season swap with Verstappen replacing Daniil Kvyat. This was the same race where the Silver Arrow war hit a fever pitch with Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg wrecking each other on the opening lap, paving the way for a Red Bull victory. At 18 years and 228 days old, Verstappen also made himself the youngest winner in F1 history.

David Coulthard: 4th in the 2005 Australian Grand Prix

David Coulthard

Photo by: Red Bull Racing

The veteran driver was part of the original driver lineup for Red Bull in its inaugural season. Coulthard put his decade of F1 experience to good use, just missing out on a podium result in Red Bull’s very first race as an organization. 

Sergio Perez: 5th in the 2021 Bahrain Grand Prix

Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing on the grid

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Perez was perfectly respectable in his first race with Red Bull, but still trained Verstappen who earned pole position and finished second. Perez qualified 11th and steadily marched forward to finish fifth. He was over 50 seconds behind Verstappen at the checkered flag, but still, it was solid for his first start with the team.

Alexander Albon: 5th in the 2019 Belgian Grand Prix

Alex Albon, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

Albon was another driver who joined the primary team mid-season, replacing an underperforming Pierre Gasly. His initial fifth-place finish was nearly as good as Gasly’s high of fourth in the previous 12 races. Albon also had to start deep in the field after the team exceeded its quota for power unit components, and earned itself a penalty — forcing Albon to charge from 17th on the grid.

Christian Klien: 7th in the 2005 Australian Grand Prix

Christian Klien

Photo by: Red Bull Racing

Klien is a name most modern F1 fans don’t know, but he was partnered with Coulthard as part of the original driver lineup for Red Bull in 2005. The Austrian had a respectable outing, qualifying directly behind his veteran teammate before going on to place seventh in a solid race.

Vitantonio Liuzzi: 8th in the 2005 San Marino Grand Prix

Vitantonio Liuzzi

Photo by: Red Bull Racing

Liuzzi shared the second Red Bull seat with Klien through the team’s first season, but he ran only four races in total. His best showing came in his first race, qualifying directly behind his veteran teammate Coulthard before marching into a points-paying position on race day.

Daniil Kvyat: 9th in the 2015 Malaysian GP

Daniil Kvyat, Red Bull Racing RB11

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Kvyat was supposed to make his debut in the season-opener in Melbourne, but a gearbox issue meant he never got to start the race. His actual debut came in the second round of the year at the Malaysian GP, finishing ninth and beating teammate Daniel Ricciardo. However, the junior team with Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz beat both of the Red Bull drivers that day.

Pierre Gasly: 11th in the 2019 Australian GP 

Pierre Gasly, Red Bull Racing RB15

Photo by: Erik Junius

Gasly’s short stint with Red Bull started in Australia, like so many others on this list. He started the weekend eliminated in Q1, and while he avoided major drama during the race, he failed to score any points while teammate Max Verstappen secured a podium finish.

Robert Doornbos: 12th in the 2006 Chinese GP

Robert DoornbosRed Bull Raing with damaged front wing at the start of the race

Photo by: Mark Capilitan

A test driver for most of the year, Doornbos got his shot in Shanghai after Klien was sacked by the team. He out-qualified Coulthard, but ended up trailing him by three positions in the GP, finishing one lap behind the race winner.

Sebastian Vettel: 13th (DNF) in the 2009 Australian GP

Robert Kubica, BMW Sauber F1.09, Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing RB5 Renault

Photo by: Scott Wensley

What made Vettel such a unique case was the fact that he had already won a race with Red Bull’s sister team before he ever got a shot with the primary team. Everyone knew he was a special talent after winning a wet-weather race at Monza. And his finish in Australia does not reflect how he ran at all. Vettel qualified 3rd and was competitive throughout the day. However, while battling to the inside of Robert Kubica late in the event, Vettel collided with the side-pod of Kubica’s BMW Sauber, forcing both cars out of the race. They were just over two laps shy of the checkered flag and were fighting for second place on track. But it all worked out okay for Vettel, who would go on to win four consecutive F1 titles between 2010 and 2013.

Mark Webber: 13th in the 2007 Australian GP

Mark Webber, Red Bull Racing RB3-Renault

Photo by: John Marsh / Motorsport Images

Webber moved from Williams to Red Bull ahead of the 2007 season and alongside Coulthard, Red Bull had both drivers above the age of 30 on the team in a highly experienced driver lineup. Webber bested Coulthard in both qualifying and the race, placing 13th in the Australian Grand Prix, mirroring Vettel’s final result, but the car didn’t have the speed to run much better at the time.

Liam Lawson: 15th (DNF) in the 2025 Australian GP

Liam Lawson, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: James Sutton / Motorsport Images

While losing the seat after just two races is extremely harsh, Lawson’s first race with Red Bull was among the worst of anyone on this list. He struggled with the car all weekend, qualifying 18th while Verstappen was up in third. The race wasn’t much better, though he did better than some of the other young drivers in the tricky conditions. The high-attrition race saw several retirements with Lawson’s car snapping around on him through Turn 1, hitting the outside wall after completing 46 of 57 laps. He was the sixth and final driver to retire from the race while Verstappen went on to finish second.

Daniel Ricciardo: 2nd but DISQUALIFIED in 2014 Australian GP

Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing, 2nd Position, on the podium with his trophy and champagne

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

Statistically speaking, Ricciardo’s first start with Red Bull was the ‘worst’ due to suffering a post-race DQ, but in truth, he was one of the most impressive drivers on debut. Ricciardo qualified outside on the front row and held strong throughout the race, scoring a podium in front of his home crowd and placing second to race winner Nico Rosberg. However, the car was found to be in violation of F1’s technical regulations. Per the 2014 regulations, the fuel could not flow to the engine at a rate of more than 100kg per hour, but Red Bull exceeded this allowance, resulting in disqualification.