"Was Sergio Perez really that bad or was he mentally destroyed?": 'Max Verstappen' warning issued to Liam Lawson by paddock veteran

Paddock veteran Frits Van Amersfoort has warned Liam Lawson that he's going into Max Verstappen's team and it's not going to be easy. Since Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull at the end of 2018, it's become very hard for the Austrian team to find a contender who could be an able partner for Max.

It began with Pierre Gasly getting an opportunity in 2019 but only lasted half a season. It was followed by Alex Albon replacing the French driver and struggling to keep up with Max Verstappen for 18 months. Albon was replaced by Sergio Perez, who started his stint on a promising note but failed to complement his Dutch teammate.

Talking to Motorsport, Van Amersfoort questioned if Sergio Perez was really that bad or if he was mentally destroyed by driving alongside Max Verstappen. Amersfoort said (as quoted by PlanetF1):

“If there is one person who has a lot of potential, it is him (Liam Lawson). It will be interesting to see how he holds his own at Red Bull. There is – and the experts agree on this – a great danger in driving next to Max. Because was Sergio Perez really that bad or is he mentally destroyed?"

Claiming how the Verstappens were an overwhelming presence on the racing front, he added:

"Or has he perhaps mentally destroyed himself? That is difficult for me as an outsider to judge. But I speak from experience when I say that the Verstappens are not the easiest. In principle, they leave no room for anyone.”

Sergio Perez's stint at Red Bull coincided with the team building a brilliant car that dominated the ground effect era. As soon as the car's competitiveness fell off, Perez began to struggle as well. The Mexican was almost a shadow of himself in the second half of 2024 and ultimately cost the team the title while Max Verstappen secured his.

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Liam Lawson would be smart to play second fiddle to Max Verstappen, according to Frits Van Amersfoort

Talking about the approach that Liam Lawson could take, Van Amersfoort felt that the Kiwi would be smart to just play the role of second fiddle to Max Verstappen for the time being. The Dutch driver has been a part of the team for a long time now, and it won't be a surprise if he looks for a new challenge.

Mentioning how the Kiwi should initially look to develop chemistry with the four-time champion, Amersfoort said (as quoted by the aforementioned source):

“If he is smart, he will accept that he has to play second fiddle for a while in the beginning. There will come a time when Max decides that it is time to take a different path or to quit. And that will be the moment for Liam to strike. Until then, I hope that Liam and Max develop a relationship in which they help each other, instead of working against each other."

Mentioning how Lawson was going to face immense pressure owing to Red Bull's success in recent years, Amersfoort added:

“It’s a minefield that Liam is entering, but of course you can’t turn down an offer to drive for Red Bull Racing. It’s just the situation as it happened. They threw Max in at the deep end at the time. He kept swimming straight away. That could happen to Liam too. Although we can’t rule out that he’ll go under at the moment. The pressure to perform will be enormous from day one. And after fifty years of motorsport, I’ve learned one thing: the future is always uncertain in motorsport. For everyone.”

Max Verstappen has been a dominant teammate more often than not, and that does play on the mental strength if you're still inexperienced. For Liam Lawson, the biggest challenge could be just that where he tries to build himself even after losing to his teammate every weekend.