Red Bull made one of its most ruthless driver decisions this week by replacing Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda, who will step in for the Milton Keynes outfit from the Japanese GP onwards. However, the team’s management of Lawson’s demotion to Tsunoda’s seat at their sister team, RB, has been far from ideal.
The Kiwi driver was struggling badly in the two race weekends in Australia and China. One would’ve hoped that the top brass at Red Bull, including team principal Christian Horner and chief advisor Helmut Marko, would show some support to back Lawson‘s abilities, given they chose him to be Max Verstappen’s teammate for 2025.
That was certainly not the case. When asked in Shanghai about Lawson’s struggles in the RB21, Horner diplomatically stated that they would look at the data and figure out what needs to be done. These comments had clear undertones of Lawson getting the pink slip at Red Bull soon enough.
After the China weekend, the rumors of a swap between Tsunoda and Lawson intensified, and even Marko started commenting about the 23-year-old’s dire situation. In fact, the Austrian veteran admitted in an interview with OE24 that promoting Lawson for 2025 was a ‘mistake’—not something a team would say about a youngster they want to nurture.
“He went into a downward spiral. It’s like a battered boxer; it’s very difficult to get out of it. In that sense, it was a mistake (to put Lawson in the Red Bull cockpit, ed.),” Marko said. Apparently, this interview was before the official confirmation of the driver swap came out. So, Red Bull had probably made up their mind in China itself.
“To describe him as a ‘mistake’, that’s gonna be harsh. That’s like a punch in the stomach for Liam. That’s gonna hurt,” RacingNews365’s Ian Parkes said while reflecting on what the Kiwi driver must be going through currently.
Helmut Marko on Liam Lawson Red Bull demotion:https://t.co/KAgcS1druI pic.twitter.com/Haycg4Y6mo
— PlanetF1 (@Planet_F1) March 27, 2025
While Horner did claim that they are demoting Lawson to take care of him and help him rebuild his confidence, F1 journalists like Will Buxton and Christian Hewgill have slammed this statement. Buxton feels that Horner and Marko are simply using Lawson as a sacrificial lamb when they, as the team bosses, have not been able to help Red Bull field a strong car this season.
Horner also said that it was a “sporting decision” as they wish to win both championships this season. Buxton, however, labeled his ‘duty of care’ comment as “laughable” on the Fast and the Curious podcast.
And Horner’s reasoning stands out even more because they had chosen the New Zealander over Tsunoda by claiming that he had better potential for the long-term. However, their decision to demote Lawson so quickly doesn’t align with their previous long-term plans for him.
Can Lawson bounce back from this?
Many have claimed that Red Bull should’ve given Lawson more races in 2025 to let him adjust to the car and show what he can do relative to Verstappen. However, getting rid of him after just two weekends reflects the ruthless nature of the Austrian team’s decision-making when it comes to drivers.
While Red Bull have to focus on Tsunoda doing well in that tricky RB21, Lawson may have a blessing in disguise due to this demotion. So far in the two Grand Prix weekends in Melbourne and Shanghai, the Racing Bulls car has proven to be easier to drive and even competed consistently in the top ten.
Given that he has driven for the Faenza-based outfit in the past two seasons and is familiar with the Suzuka International Circuit, where the next Grand Prix takes place, the Kiwi driver won’t face any major obstacles in jumping in that car and doing well as he did in the 11 races before. Even RB team boss Laurent Mekies has made positive comments about welcoming Lawson back to Faenza and helping him rediscover his mojo.
Parkes too feels this could be an ideal setting for the 23-year-old to forget this mini episode of struggle at Red Bull and focus on rebuilding his career like Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon did after their respective sackings from Milton Keynes.
“It’s now an opportunity for him to reinvent himself all over again inside a nurturing team that he knows,” Parkes added. “They can put an arm around him and bring him out of this [mess]”.
It seems unlikely that Red Bull will ever consider Lawson again for a seat on their main team. However, Lawson would be keen to prove to them that he is still good enough in the right car, and with the right support, he can perform.
