Lawson’s F1 axing makes him a scapegoat for wider problems at Red Bull
Liam Lawson has suffered one of the more ruthless axings in Formula 1, and his replacement will need to overcome a temperamental car and a dysfunctional team or be at risk of a similar fate.
Red Bull officially announced on Thursday that Kiwi Lawson, a young driver of just 11 grands prix and promoted to the team in the off-season, is being replaced after just two rounds.
The dream job of driving for a team who wants to contend for world titles was an unmitigated nightmare for Lawson, who did not score points in either grand prix, or the sprint race in China.
In justifying axing Lawson for Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said:
“We have a duty of care to protect and develop Liam and together, we see that after such a difficult start, it makes sense to act quickly so Liam can gain experience, as he continues his F1 career with … Racing Bulls, an environment and a team he knows very well.“
Horner can call the switch a “duty of care”, but this Red Bull sacking is not an indictment of Lawson, but a glaring failure of the team.
It is this failure that Tsunoda is stepping into and must overcome to survive the curse of being Max Verstappen’s teammate.
When Tsunoda takes to the grid next week in front of his home fans in Suzuka, he will be Verstappen’s fifth different teammate since 2019.
More alarmingly, he will be the fourth to come from Red Bull’s junior team.
Red Bull is unique in the world of F1 — it controls two teams.
In theory, Racing Bulls (formerly known as RB, AlphaTauri and Torro Rosso) should serve as a stepping stone for drivers in the Red Bull program to enter F1, and work their way to the main Red Bull Racing team.
It is an advantage that no other F1 team has, yet it seems to fail time and time again.
At least that is the plan.
While Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo all had success going from the junior team to the big boys, for most, it has been their downfall.
Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda will debut for Red Bull at his home Formula 1 grand prix. (Getty Images: Rudy Carezzevoli)
Pierre Gasly was dumped after just 12 races in 2019, after making the step up from the junior team. The Frenchman was replaced by Alex Albon, who lasted 26 races before Red Bull cut him loose.
And the problems date back further, with Daniil Kvyat being dumped early in his second season, replaced by Verstappen, who rubbed salt into the wounds by winning his debut race for the top team.
Lawson is just the latest driver to be chewed up and spat out, and evidence would suggest Tsunoda could be in for a similar world of hurt.
It is a sign that something is not working at Red Bull, a surprising thought considering Verstappen has won the previous four drivers’ championships.
But with a rotating cast of teammates who are being well beaten by the Dutch ace, it begins to feel as if Verstappen’s legendary brilliance has been masking fundamental flaws in the team.
It was only two years ago to the day when the F1 world descended on Melbourne for the 2023 Australian Grand Prix.
Red Bull had a history-making season in 2022, and their drivers, Verstappen and Perez had each won in the opening two rounds.
The rest of the field was not within coo-ee of Red Bull.
In that 2023 season, people did not tune into F1 to see who was going to win. They wanted to see by how much Red Bull, mainly Verstappen, would win.
The Red Bull of 2023 was so much better than the rest of the F1 field it was almost laughable. The nine other teams were competing in a different category to the world champions.
Since then, Red Bull’s car has acted like it has a mind of its own.
Red Bull suffered a spectacular fall in 2024. After appearing to be cruising to another constructors’ championship after 10 rounds, the wheels seemed to fall off and the team placed third, behind McLaren and Ferrari.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen has won the previous four F1 drivers’ championships. (AP: Andre Penner)
At one point it looked as if Verstappen’s drivers’ championship was under threat, despite winning seven of the first 10 grands prix — two sensational drives in Brazil and Qatar ensured at least the drivers’ championship would stay with Red Bull.
Behind the scenes Red Bull has gone through backroom turmoil in the past 18 months, with a texting scandal, rumours of a power struggle, and the departure of F1 car design maestro Adrian Newey.
This year’s Red Bull car, the RB21, has difficulties that need addressing.
The chaotic nature of the Red Bull car was abundantly clear in last weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix when Verstappen was well off the pace to start the race, then his car came to life and he was, at times, the quickest on track.
But with a regulation overhaul next season, the team will increasingly prioritise the 2026 challenger as this year goes on.
The car’s inconsistency will be a hurdle for Verstappen to overcome in his bid to win races but for Tsunoda, like Lawson, it could be a hurdle for him even staying with the team.
Tsundoa is clearly Red Bull’s second choice, after the team paid Mexican Sergio Perez a heap of money to break his contract at the end of 2024.
The Japanese driver had four years’ experience with the junior team, but Red Bull chose the Kiwi with just 11 races over two seasons.
Despite Tsunoda driving brilliantly to start this season — cruelled in both grands prix by bad strategy calls from his team — the step up to the main Red Bull team must feel like trying to summit Everest without food or water.
Unlike Lawson, again the driver Red Bull chose first, Tsundoa doesn’t have the benefit of a full pre-season with the team. He has been preparing to drive the secondary car, which, despite being slower, looks much easier to drive.
The RB21 has the raw performance to contend for titles, but it is not smooth to drive. It may be that Verstappen is the only driver on the grid who could succeed in the monster that is the RB21.
But what happens if Tsunoda doesn’t hit the ground running?
It is a scenario Red Bull will need to think about because history suggests it is a real possibility.
Other teams at the top of the sport have allowed young drivers to thrive.
McLaren has both Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris firing on all cylinders, while teenager Andrea Kimi Antonelli has shone in his first two races with Mercedes.
Oliver Bearman, now with Haas, scored points in his debut last season when he filled in for Ferrari on short notice, and Alpine reserve driver Franco Colapinto achieved two top-10 finishes when he was plucked from F2 into the Williams team in mid-2024.
But Red Bull has not been a happy hunting ground for most young drivers, and this is an issue Red Bull needs to address desperately, or risk falling behind its rivals as they enter a new regulation era in F1.
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