Just two races into his Formula 1 career, 23-year old Liam Lawson has reportedly been dropped from Red Bull’s team.
Netherlands top newspaper ‘De Telegraaf’ announced that he’s been straight swapped for Yuki Tsunoda and demoted back to the Red Bull Junior Team immediately.
Tsunoda will be Max Verstappen’s new teammate for the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday April 6th.
Lawson, who Kiwis have always shown love to, only had two races as an official part of Red Bull’s F1 team, but underperformed in both.
He qualified 18th for the Australian Grand Prix, before then spinning out, crashing and failing to finish. His second race at the China Grand Prix failed to serve as a redemption race, where he placed 18th but time and disqualifications lifted him to a distant 12th.
Lawson’s pre-season expectations were that he was to finish within the top 10, and clearly, Red Bull don’t mess about when you fall short.
This decision was made by senior Red Bull figures in Dubai, which is home to major Red Bull shareholder Chalerm Yoovidhya.
Honda, the engine supplier for Red Bull, was allegedly also involved in the deal, backing Tsunoda in support and financial terms.
Following Lawson’s China stint, Tsunoda commented that he is “100% faster” and should serve as the replacement, but Lawson was cool, calm and collected in his response: “He can say whatever he wants.”
I’ve raced him for years, raced him in junior categories and beat him.
Red Bull owner Christian Honer was asked about the potential for Lawson to be dropped following his performance in China, which he did not shut down at the time: “There’s always going to be speculation in the paddock.
“We’ve only just finished the race here. We’ll take away the info and have a good look at it.”
Red Bull are yet to confirm the reports, but are expected to make the news official later this week.
