Red Bull Racing CEO Christian Horner has stated that the team will analyze the data from Liam Lawson’s performance at the Chinese GP to better understand his struggles. Speaking to onsite media in Shanghai, Horner emphasized that the information gathered from the New Zealander’s races will be crucial in addressing Red Bull’s pace deficit to Max Verstappen.
Lawson’s challenging start to the 2024 season has raised concerns within the team. After retiring in Australia, he finished 12th in China but has struggled significantly in qualifying—placing 18th in Melbourne, 20th in the sprint and 20th in the main race. Three consecutive Q1 eliminations have fueled speculation about whether he will complete the entire season with Red Bull.
Horner acknowledged that Lawson’s performance inconsistencies have prompted the team to explore ways to support him better. He stressed that there is a lot of data to sift through to assess the 23-year-old’s adaptability and potential solutions to help him improve.
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Commenting on Lawson’s dismal start to the 2025 campaign, the Red Bull Racing CEO said (via Motorsport):
“I think Liam's had a tough couple of races, a tough weekend here. We elected to take him off the grid out of parc ferme to do a significant set-up change and so we've managed to get 56 laps of reasonable data from that. Obviously we'll take that away, we'll have a good look at it and as a group we'll do our best to support him.
“We'll just continue to evaluate it. We'll take away a stack of data to go and have a look at. That's what we'll do. Obviously, there's 400 engineers in our team that are all trawling through the 600 sensors that are on the car. There's an awful lot of information that we have. Look, I think there's so much info, how he's adapted driving the car, what he's getting from the car, what can we do to help, where are his major issues, what's causing inconsistency, all of those issues.”
Christian Horner believes that Liam Lawson still has the potential to perform at Red Bull
Christian Horner refrained from commenting on speculation regarding a potential swap between Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson at Red Bull. The Red Bull Racing CEO maintained that it was still early in the season and that the New Zealander had the potential to deliver.
Dismissing the swirling rumors, Horner emphasized that just two races had taken place, making it premature to discuss a driver change. He stressed that Red Bull had a responsibility to support Lawson in adapting to the RB21 rather than reacting hastily.
Horner also expressed concern over the increasing media scrutiny, which he felt added unnecessary pressure on the newly recruited driver. He reiterated his belief in Lawson’s capabilities, suggesting that his talent had yet to fully translate into lap time and results. He believes it is important to address the reason why the Red Bull driver has not been able to deliver results despite his potential.
Commenting on speculation about Yuki Tsunoda replacing Lawson at Red Bull, Horner said (via Motorsport):
“There's always going to be speculation in the paddock. As I say, we've only just finished the race here. We'll take away the info and have a good look at it. There's nothing specific that's been set up. Look, I think everything is purely speculative at the moment. I think Liam still has got potential. We're just not realising that at the moment.
"I'm not even going to comment on a change, because that would be your first headline. As I say, we're two races into this championship. We have a sample of two. We have quite a bit of information. We're going to go away and have a good look at it, and work with Liam and do the best that we can for him.”
Stating their current approach towards Lawson, the Red Bull Racing CEO said:
“I think the problem for him is he's had a couple of really tough weekends. He's got all the media on his back, a whole bunch. The pressure just naturally grows in this business, and I feel very sorry for him. You can see it's very tough on him at the moment. I think he's a young guy. We've got a duty to look after him and we're going to do the best that we can to support him. And, yes, Liam's still a very capable driver. We know that. We're just not seeing it for whatever reason. We're not seeing him able to deliver that at the moment.”
Liam Lawson’s struggles in the Australian and Chinese Grands Prix have fueled growing speculation about his future with Red Bull. Critics argue that the team may have set him up for failure by promoting him too soon, while others question whether a mid-season switch to Yuki Tsunoda would be premature, given that the Japanese driver has had no pre-season testing with the RB21.
With the departures of Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez, Red Bull lacks experienced backup options—something that could have been valuable in such a scenario. However, their immediate priority remains getting Lawson up to speed to prevent further losses to rival teams, as seen in 2024. Given McLaren and Ferrari’s growing threat, it is crucial for Red Bull that their second driver closes the performance gap to Max Verstappen rather than widens it.
