Perez has a contract with Red Bull for 2024 but amid his protracted run of poor form and the team’s track record for mid-season driver changes, there remains plenty of uncertainty over his F1 future.
This peaked following the Mexican Grand Prix last weekend. Fifth-starting Perez tangled with Charles Leclerc into Turn 1 to trigger his retirement, while Ricciardo excelled by qualifying fourth and finishing seventh.
Tsunoda, meanwhile, has rarely been heavily linked with becoming Verstappen’s team-mate.
Asked by Autosport why he thought this was the case, Tsunoda reckoned the noise around Ricciardo “makes sense” and was down to the eight-time GP winner’s experience and bigger fanbase.
“Daniel has more experience; Daniel has obviously more fans,” said Tsunoda. “He is [one of the] more trusted drivers. I guess he is [one of the] most valued drivers, so it makes sense.”
Tsunoda added that it was now up to him to prove to Red Bull management why he was deserving of a full-time seat. He continued: “I just have to show my performance consistently to kind of to show them. Everyone can understand that I can be that contender.
“Checo has next year's contract so nothing we can do, and I don't think that you can change anything. I just have to now keep showing my results. I think that's it.”
Source: Autosport