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‘Crush his spirit’ – Red Bull confirm brutal decision that left Max Verstappen ‘disappointed’
Red Bull Racing have confirmed Liam Lawson has been brutally dropped after just two races. Yuki Tsunoda will partner reigning F1 world champion Max Verstappen from his home race at the Japanese Grand Prix onwards. Lawson is out at Red Bull after just two racesGetty He has now been replaced by his more experienced teammateGetty Lawson was initially promoted from sister team Racing Bulls during the offseason but will now head back in a seat swap with Tsuonda, who spent the past four seasons with the junior squad. Laurent Mekies, Team Principal of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, said in a statement confirming the bombshell announcement on Thursday. It read: “We’re incredibly proud of Yuki earning his well-deserved move to Oracle Red Bull Racing! “His progress last year, and more recently from the very start of 2025, has been nothing less than sensational. “Personally, and collectively, it has been an immense privilege to witness those progresses for all of us in Faenza and in Milton Keynes. “Yuki’s energy and positivity has lightened up every corner of our factories and of our garage and he will always be a Racing Bull! We wish him all the success he deserves at ORBR.” A swap was much discussed after Lawson followed up his Australia debut with a poor showing in China, although it appears that not everyone was in agreement. Dutch outlet De Telegraaf, who have a close relationship with the Verstappen family, claim that the No.1 driver isn’t happy with the call. F1 editor Erik van Haren commented that it’s ‘easy to guess what Verstappen thinks’ given that he defended the New Zealander in China. If there was any doubt, Verstappen then tellingly liked a post on Instagram saying Red Bull ‘gave Liam two races only to crush his spirit’. Red Bull are facing all sorts of problems with Verstappen unable to compete with McLaren this seasonGetty Verstappen made his feelings clear after Lawson’s axing was confirmedInstagram Christian Horner‘s team paid a hefty fee to get Lawson on board as they had to pay their way out of Sergio Perez‘s contract, which cost a reported £12million. The Mexican joined a long list of drivers unable to get anywhere near reigning four-time world champion Verstappen in the same car. Not since 2017 with Ricciardo have Red Bull had a second driver on pace with Verstappen, aside from a decent run from Perez in 2021. Well-respected duo Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly, now of Williams and Alpine, both failed to replace Ricciardo, but none quite so badly as Lawson. The New Zealander, who raced alongside Tsunoda at Racing Bulls last season, has been at the back of the grid with Red Bull. Lawson qualified 18th on debut in Australia and then was running in last in the race before crashing in 15th. In China, he qualified last and finished 12th, while in the sprint race, he was 14th. “It has been difficult to see Liam struggle with the RB21 at the first two races and, as a result, we have collectively taken the decision to make an early switch,” Horner said. “We came into the 2025 season, with two ambitions, to retain the world drivers’ championship and to reclaim the world constructors’ title and this is a purely sporting decision. “We acknowledge there is a lot of work to be done with the RB21, and Yuki’s experience will prove highly beneficial in helping to develop the current car. “We welcome him to the team and are looking forward to seeing him behind the wheel of the RB21. “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 Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, an environment and a team he knows very well.” This was Red Bull principal Horner speaking on talkSPORT in December The remarkable turnaround comes after Red Bull principal Horner had exclusively told talkSPORT why Tsunoda was originally snubbed for this season. “There’s a process, we all have shareholders, you make a recommendation and the shareholders have always been tremendously supportive,” Horner said on talkSPORT’s White and Jordan in December. “Liam’s a product of our junior team and he’s a young talent that we took on six years ago and nurtured him through the lower Formula, as we did with Sebastian Vettel and as we’ve done with Max. “I think we’re seeing in him a character and a robustness to deal with the pressure of being Max’s teammate. He’s only done 11 Prix but he impressed us and the engineering staff and, of course, the scrutiny he will be under as Max’s teammate. “If you liken it to football you can’t have two centre-forwards, you’ve got to have strength and depth in your team, and Liam with the experience he has coming into the team is there to provide that strength and depth in what we need from an engineering and tactical perspective
Red Bull Racing have confirmed Liam Lawson has been brutally dropped after just two races.
Yuki Tsunoda will partner reigning F1 world champion Max Verstappen from his home race at the Japanese Grand Prix onwards.
Lawson was initially promoted from sister team Racing Bulls during the offseason but will now head back in a seat swap with Tsuonda, who spent the past four seasons with the junior squad.
Laurent Mekies, Team Principal of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, said in a statement confirming the bombshell announcement on Thursday.
It read: “We’re incredibly proud of Yuki earning his well-deserved move to Oracle Red Bull Racing!
“His progress last year, and more recently from the very start of 2025, has been nothing less than sensational.
“Personally, and collectively, it has been an immense privilege to witness those progresses for all of us in Faenza and in Milton Keynes.
“Yuki’s energy and positivity has lightened up every corner of our factories and of our garage and he will always be a Racing Bull! We wish him all the success he deserves at ORBR.”
A swap was much discussed after Lawson followed up his Australia debut with a poor showing in China, although it appears that not everyone was in agreement.
Dutch outlet De Telegraaf, who have a close relationship with the Verstappen family, claim that the No.1 driver isn’t happy with the call.
F1 editor Erik van Haren commented that it’s ‘easy to guess what Verstappen thinks’ given that he defended the New Zealander in China.
If there was any doubt, Verstappen then tellingly liked a post on Instagram saying Red Bull ‘gave Liam two races only to crush his spirit’.
Christian Horner‘s team paid a hefty fee to get Lawson on board as they had to pay their way out of Sergio Perez‘s contract, which cost a reported £12million.
The Mexican joined a long list of drivers unable to get anywhere near reigning four-time world champion Verstappen in the same car.
Not since 2017 with Ricciardo have Red Bull had a second driver on pace with Verstappen, aside from a decent run from Perez in 2021.
Well-respected duo Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly, now of Williams and Alpine, both failed to replace Ricciardo, but none quite so badly as Lawson.
The New Zealander, who raced alongside Tsunoda at Racing Bulls last season, has been at the back of the grid with Red Bull.
Lawson qualified 18th on debut in Australia and then was running in last in the race before crashing in 15th.
In China, he qualified last and finished 12th, while in the sprint race, he was 14th.
“It has been difficult to see Liam struggle with the RB21 at the first two races and, as a result, we have collectively taken the decision to make an early switch,” Horner said.
“We came into the 2025 season, with two ambitions, to retain the world drivers’ championship and to reclaim the world constructors’ title and this is a purely sporting decision.
“We acknowledge there is a lot of work to be done with the RB21, and Yuki’s experience will prove highly beneficial in helping to develop the current car.
“We welcome him to the team and are looking forward to seeing him behind the wheel of the RB21.
“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 Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, an environment and a team he knows very well.”
The remarkable turnaround comes after Red Bull principal Horner had exclusively told talkSPORT why Tsunoda was originally snubbed for this season.
“There’s a process, we all have shareholders, you make a recommendation and the shareholders have always been tremendously supportive,” Horner said on talkSPORT’s White and Jordan in December.
“Liam’s a product of our junior team and he’s a young talent that we took on six years ago and nurtured him through the lower Formula, as we did with Sebastian Vettel and as we’ve done with Max.
“I think we’re seeing in him a character and a robustness to deal with the pressure of being Max’s teammate. He’s only done 11 Prix but he impressed us and the engineering staff and, of course, the scrutiny he will be under as Max’s teammate.
“If you liken it to football you can’t have two centre-forwards, you’ve got to have strength and depth in your team, and Liam with the experience he has coming into the team is there to provide that strength and depth in what we need from an engineering and tactical perspective because it’s going to be tight next year.
“Ferrari have got [Lewis] Hamilton and [Charles] Leclerc, two very strong drivers, McLaren have [Lando] Norris and [Oscar] Piastri.”
Less than 100 days later, Horner has performed a dramatic u-turn to drop Lawson and finally get Tsunoda in the car alongside Verstappen.
2025 Driver Standings
| Pos | Driver | Nationality | Car | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren | 44 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | NED | Red Bull Racing | 36 |
| 3 | George Russell | GBR | Mercedes | 35 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | AUS | McLaren | 34 |
| 5 | Kimi Antonelli | ITA | Mercedes | 22 |
| 6 | Alexander Albon | THA | Williams | 16 |
| 7 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | Haas | 10 |
| 8 | Lance Stroll | CAN | Aston Martin | 10 |
| 9 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Ferrari | 9 |
| 10 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Ferrari | 8 |
| 11 | Nico Hulkenberg | GER | Kick Sauber | 6 |
| 12 | Oliver Bearman | GBR | Haas | 4 |
| 13 | Yuki Tsunoda | JPN | Racing Bulls | 3 |
| 14 | Carlos Sainz | ESP | Williams | 1 |
| 15 | Isack Hadjar | FRA | Racing Bulls | 0 |
| 16 | Pierre Gasly | FRA | Alpine | 0 |
| 17 | Liam Lawson | NZL | Red Bull Racing | 0 |
| 18 | Jack Doohan | AUS | Alpine | 0 |
| 19 | Gabriel Bortoleto | BRA | Kick Sauber | 0 |
