Red Bull’s Ayumu Iwasa “would be better than Tsunoda”…

Newly crowned Super Formula champion Ayumu Iwasa has the potential to perform in Formula 1 at a higher level than Yuki Tsunoda, believes his race engineer.

Tomohiko Koike made the claim in the wake of last weekend's Suzuka finale, where two pole positions and victory in the final race were enough to propel Team Mugen’s Iwasa ahead of defending champion Sho Tsuboi in the drivers’ standings.

For the last two years, Iwasa has combined racing in Super Formula with reserve and simulator duties with Red Bull’s two F1 teams, most recently appearing with Racing Bulls in FP1 for the Mexico Grand Prix last month.

However, the Japanese driver does not appear to be in the frame for a race drive at Racing Bulls, despite both Tsunoda and Liam Lawson facing uncertain futures heading into the final part of the F1 season.

Koike, who also engineered Lawson for his Super Formula title bid in 2023, believes Iwasa’s technical knowledge could make him a better fit for F1 than his compatriot Tsunoda.

“Iwasa is getting better and better,” Koike told Motorsport. “In terms of his driving skill and his approach towards racing, he was better than last season.

“This season he has been very consistent and I would say his average performance has been the best of any driver, better than Tsuboi and Kakunoshin [Ohta].

“It’s quite easy to imagine him in Formula 1. I think he would be better than Tsunoda.

Ayumu Iwasa, Visa Cash App RB F1 Team (Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool)

“I don’t know Tsunoda personally, but I think Iwasa, not only in terms of driving skill, but his ability to set up the car is quite impressive, on the same level as [Tomoki] Nojiri.

“That’s why I think he would be able to drive better in F1 than some drivers who are on the grid. He just needs to be given a chance, that’s the most difficult thing.”

Addressing his future after winning the title, Iwasa remained coy about his 2026 plans in the likely absence of an opportunity to step up to an F1 race seat.

“At this stage I don’t know,” said Iwasa when asked what winning the Super Formula crown could mean for his career moving forward.

“I think it will be up to me to make the best use of that value, so I want to move forward in a way that lets me make full use of the title of champion, of being number one in Japan.”

Koike said Mugen would “really welcome” Iwasa staying at the team to defend his Super Formula title, adding: “I think he will only reach an even higher level.”

Dethroned Tsuboi admits: “It was Iwasa’s year”

Sho Tsuboi, VANTELIN TEAM TOM’S (Photo by: Masahide Kamio)

Tsuboi went into Sunday’s deciding race at Suzuka with a 12.5-point margin over Iwasa, which meant he needed to finish fourth in order to prevent the Mugen driver from overturning his lead.

But a disappointing run to eighth from seventh on the grid meant the TOM’S driver ended up 4.5 points away from becoming the Toyota team’s first ever back-to-back champion.

Addressing reporters post-race, Tsuboi conceded Iwasa was the year’s rightful champion, highlighting the points his rival lost at both Autopolis and Motegi due to car failures.

“In terms of pure speed, I think there was absolutely no chance of beating the Honda drivers this weekend, and Iwasa made almost no mistakes in any race this year,” said Tsuboi.

“Whenever he finished a race, he was in the top three. I think it was Iwasa’s year.

“He had mechanical trouble on two occasions, so if you give him back the points he lost there, he should have been far ahead coming into this weekend.

“From that point of view, it was only through his misfortune that I was able to stay in the title fight until the end. In reality, Iwasa should have been champion before the final race.

“Of course I am frustrated, but I did all I could. Iwasa was really amazing this year.”

Additional reporting by Kenichiro Ebii