"The problem with that car is not the driver but the car itself": Fans react to reports of Liam Lawson's imminent departure from Red Bull

Liam Lawson finished 12th at the Chinese Grand Prix, marking his second outing with Red Bull without a point to his name. Subsequently, paddock chatter revealed that the Austrian giant is considering dropping the Kiwi from the team as early as Japan, but fans pooled in to defend Lawson while asserting the blame over to Red Bull for not making car capable of competing for race wins.

Last year was earmarked with Sergio Perez's struggle at the helm of the RB20. This prompted Horner & Co. to pay off the Mexican's contract to get a driver that would be able to fight for top positions like Max Verstappen.

The Red Bull senior figures found Liam Lawson to be the suitable candidate, overlooking much more experienced Yuki Tsunoda and affirming their faith in the New Zealander's abilities. However, after just two rounds of the 2025 season, Christian Horner did not give a firm "yes" to questions surrounding Lawson's job security at Red Bull, making Tsunoda's case better day-by-day to replace the Kiwi:

Reckoning that the New Zealander's name is facing unwarranted criticism due to a car that is supposedly made to favor Verstappen's driving style, fans shared their opinions:

"Will not work better, the problem with that car is not the driver but the car itself made for max, and the whole team who don't give a sh*t to the 2nd car... If Yuki or Isaak is promoted, it's gonna be a fail, they'd better stay at RB."

"2 races is no fair crack of the whip, they’ve got to give Lawson a longer chance. This would be brutal even by RBR's standards," one fan wrote.

"Liam had one race. Seems harsh. Australia was a disaster even for experienced drivers. Perez bundled around for a season and a half. Seems harsh," another one wrote.

Other questioned about Red Bull's thinking pattern while selecting a driver for the second seat:

"Why the he’ll they’ve mess things up bringing Colapinto into this?" one questioned.

"I can't understand why they didn't sign Sainz, unless there was a personality issue with him and Max," another one asked.

The second Red Bull seat has not performed up to the level of the Dutchman since Daniel Ricciardo left the Milton Keynes-based squad in 2018.

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Red Bull chief admits that the RB21 is difficult to handle for Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson at the F1 Grand Prix of China - Source: Getty

Liam Lawson's predecessors have fallen prey to the second seat curse. While experts earlier questioned the drivers, the narrative has slowly changed over to the car not being confidence-inducing for anyone except for the reigning champion.

Admitting the core problem with the RB21, Helmut Marko asserted that only Verstappen is able to adjust to the difficulties of driving the Red Bull car, and said (via RacingNews365):

"The car is difficult to drive, and Max is able to adjust to that.”

If Liam Lawson is sacked before taking part at the Japanese Grand Prix, he will have the unfortunate crown of being the fastest driver to love the seat at Red Bull, Robert Doornbos held the title for almost two decades, as he was dropped at the end of the 2006 season after only making three race starts.