Ever since Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull Racing after the 2018 season, the team has been struggling to find the right driver to team up with Max Verstappen. This has led certain people to believe that there’s a curse on the 2nd Red Bull seat. Its next potential victim: Liam Lawson.
Since the 2018 season, Red Bull has had 4 drivers in the 2nd seat and none of them have impressed with positive results. In 2019, we saw Pierre Gasly struggling with results and was replaced mid-season by Alex Albon. Although Albon showed that he had some potential, he was not able to help Max in the Championship fight in 2020.
In 2021, the Austrian team went outside their driver pool and chose Sergio Perez. During his first season with the team, it seemed as though Red Bull finally chose a driver who can compete for podiums and win along with Verstappen. And that’s exactly what Checo did that year. He played an integral role in helping Max win his first Championship. But then, his pace started to fall off.
Although Perez did win a few races with Red Bull, he was nowhere close to his teammate’s pace. This was fine when the team had the dominant car in 2022 and 2023. But come 2024, McLaren and Ferrari gave the Austrian team a run for their money. While Max was still fighting for wins, Perez was struggling to score points. This lost Red Bull the Constructors’ Championship while Max won the Drivers’ Championship. This eventually led to Liam Lawson replacing Perez for the 2025 season.
Is Liam Lawson the next victim of the curse?
Right now, it’s too early to say as we have only witnessed one race this year. But it was not a good race for Lawson. He qualified P18, started from the pit lane, failed to make progress throughout the race, and ended up crashing his car into the wall and ending his race. At the same time, Max finished P2.
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Red Bull is definitely not expecting Lawson to compete against Max Verstappen as he is now arguably the best driver on the grid. However, Max does need some support from Lawson if the team hopes to fight for the Constructors’ Championship. Hence, Red Bull is just expecting Lawson to finish in the top 10. Once he proves he can do that consistently, he can start aiming higher for the top 5. It’s a gradual progress that Red Bull is expecting from Lawson.
The real reason behind the Red Bull “curse”
While there are reasons to suggest a curse on the 2nd Red Bull seat. There is one explanation that is more plausible.
Red Bull’s cars are not like any other cars on the grid. They are designed to be driven in a particular way that Max Verstappen has mastered. He has adjusted his driving style to suit the car’s characteristics. He even drives around issues with the car in order to unlock the full potential. This is something that other drivers cannot do instantly.
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If we look at Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon, they both have performed well after their time with Red Bull. Gasly went on to win a race for AlphaTauri (now called VCARB) in 2020, Albon is now driving for Williams where he is leading the team’s rebuild as they hope to get back on the podium. So this could be one reason for the 2nd Red Bull drivers underperforming.
Another possible reason is Red Bull’s choice of drivers and how they are treated in the team. The Austrian team has always been very critical towards all their drivers.
Gasly was not given enough time with Red Bull to get adjusted to the car. The team replaced him after just 12 races. Albon was just 12 races old in F1 before they bumped him up to the senior team. Despite gaining two podium finishes in 2020, The Austrian team felt he was not consistent enough. Coming to Perez, the team gave him enough time to get adjusted. However, he was just too old and his form started to slip after the first year with the team.
Red Bull’s Decision in Question as Yuki Tsunoda Qualifies P5, Liam Lawson P18 in Australia
When Liam Lawson was chosen to be Red Bull’s next driver, the majority of the public felt that Yuki Tsunoda deserved that seat over Lawson. He has better results and more experience in F1. He probably had the best chance to support Max as Red Bull tries to make a run for the Championship. But despite these facts, the team chose Lawson.
Following the qualifying session for the Australian Grand Prix, McLaren’s CEO, Zak Brown said:
“Yuki did a great job, [he’s] probably the guy that should be in the Red Bull if you look at how he’s performed. But they seem to make some strange driver choices.”
So did Red Bull make another mistake in choosing their 2nd driver? Post your thoughts in the comments section below.
