Flames, Donuts and Drama: Tsunoda’s Red Bull Showrun Erupts in Fiery Cha…read more
Yuki Tsunoda‘s return to a Red Bull F1 car ended with the Japanese racer having to abruptly exit the car, after the RB7 caught fire at a fan event this weekend.
What was meant to be a spectacular celebration of Formula 1 heritage quickly turned into a heart-stopping moment when Yuki Tsunoda’s Red Bull demonstration run ended in flames on the streets of San Francisco.
The Japanese racer was piloting the legendary 2011 Red Bull RB7 during a high-profile fan event backed by Ford, delighting crowds with roaring straight-line blasts and smoky donuts. But shortly after completing a series of burnouts, flames suddenly burst from the rear of the car, forcing Tsunoda to bring the show to an abrupt halt.
Footage shared widely on social media showed Tsunoda calmly climbing from the cockpit as fire marshals rushed in. Within moments, the blaze was extinguished. Thankfully, no injuries were reported.
A Red Bull spokesperson later confirmed that the fire was triggered by overheating in the exhaust system following an extended demo run and routine burnouts. The intense heat ignited bodywork at the rear of the car, but safety crews reacted immediately and contained the situation.
A New Role, A Different Spotlight
The San Francisco showrun marked Tsunoda’s first major appearance since being replaced in Red Bull’s race lineup by Isack Hadjar at the end of last season. For 2026, Tsunoda will serve as a reserve driver, taking on development duties and ambassadorial appearances like this one.
It’s a familiar path within the team. Daniel Ricciardo previously carried out similar promotional runs during his own reserve stint, keeping fans entertained while remaining closely tied to the squad.
The event also featured a variety of motorsport stars, including former F1 racer Scott Speed, who appeared to brush the barriers during his run, as well as off-road and motocross athletes adding to the spectacle.
The Iconic RB7 — Loud, Legendary, and Temperamental
The machine at the center of the drama was the iconic Red Bull RB7 — a car synonymous with domination in Formula 1’s V8 era. Driven to 11 race victories in 2011 by Sebastian Vettel, the RB7 secured the German’s second world championship and cemented Red Bull’s status as the sport’s benchmark team.
Its piercing engine note echoed through San Francisco’s streets during the showrun, a nostalgic reminder of pre-hybrid F1 power. For such events, Red Bull updates the livery of its historic cars with modern sponsor branding, blending past success with present identity.
A Familiar Spark
While dramatic, the incident wasn’t entirely unprecedented. Tsunoda experienced a similar rear-end fire during a 2024 demonstration in Taiwan while driving a 2012-spec Red Bull car. That blaze, like this one, was quickly handled without injury.
Even more notably, the same 2011 RB7 previously caught fire during a 2014 showrun in Russia, proving that these high-energy demonstration runs packed with burnouts and prolonged revving can push older machinery to its limits.
In the end, the San Francisco scare delivered both spectacle and tension a reminder that even in controlled promotional events, Formula 1 cars remain fierce, high-performance machines capable of turning up the heat in more ways than one.
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