As the Japanese Grand Prix approaches, the main spotlight continues to remain on Red Bull Racing’s shocking driver swap. Initially, we hadn’t heard much from Liam Lawson on the matter. But now, he has spoken publicly for the first time to Sky Sports F1.
After just two races in the season, Red Bull has demoted Liam Lawson to Racing Bulls while Yuki Tsunoda steps up to drive the RB21. Although Tsunoda is loved by fans, many feel that Red Bull is being too harsh on Lawson. The team is known for being critical of its drivers, but two races may be too critical, even for Red Bull.
Liam Lawson opens up on Red Bull demotion
While Lawson was silent after the news broke of his demotion, with the exception of a social media post, he has finally opened up about how he felt after he received the news.
“It was definitely a shock, honestly. It’s not something that I saw coming,” Lawson told Sky Sports F1.
“The discussions we were having as well, I think, weren’t really leaning in this direction, so it was definitely not something that I expected.”
“Obviously, I would have loved more time. I felt like with more time, especially going to places that I’d been before, it was a tough start. We had a rocky pre-season testing. We had a rocky first weekend in Melbourne with practice, and then obviously China was a Sprint.”
Lawson Vs. Tsunoda: A Deep Dive Into Their F1 and Feeder Series Journeys
“I think going to places that I’d been before with the way the car was quite tricky, I think that would have helped, and I would have loved that opportunity.”
“But obviously, it’s not my decision, so I’m here to make the most of this one.”
Counting both the race weekends in Australia and China, Lawson had only 3 hours of practice in the RB21. In the first weekend, his FP3 session was cut short due to technical issues with the car. The next weekend in China, he had only 1 hour of practice as it was a Sprint Weekend.
Nevertheless, Red Bull’s management was not happy with his performance and took the difficult decision to replace him very early on.
Helmut Marko brands Lawson as a mistake
After the decision to replace Lawson was made last week, Red Bull’s senior advisor, Helmut Marko, admitted that the team made a mistake in choosing Lawson in the first place.
“Yuki was too inconsistent, and that is why we unanimously chose Lawson, but under the increased pressure, he couldn’t deliver from day one,” Marko told OE24.
“He entered a downward spiral, it is like a stricken boxer and on top of that, it is hard to get out of it. In that sense, it was a mistake.”
Christian Horner Justifies “Sporting Decision” as Yuki Tsunoda Takes Liam Lawson’s Seat at Red Bull
When Red Bull made the decision to promote Lawson instead of Tsunoda back in December, it was a decision that most in the F1 community didn’t agree with, as Tsunoda had better results and more experience in F1. However, having given the seat to Lawson, Red Bull should have stuck by their decision and given him some more time.
The team’s Principal, Christian Horner, stated that the decision was a sporting one and that they needed someone with more experience to help develop the RB21 and support Max Verstappen with winning another Championship.
Lawson will now look ahead to completing the season with Racing Bulls. Although it may not be as fast as the RB21, the VCARB-02 is easier to drive. Lawson should now just focus on doing the best he can to impress his the paddock and show that he still has the skill and talent to remain in Formula 1.
