"This is a new low": IndyCar's Will Buxton shames Red Bull for cruel Liam Lawson axing

IndyCar's play-by-play announcer Will Buxton shared his clear opinion about Red Bull’s decision to promote Yuki Tsunoda into the Red Bull seat and demote Liam Lawson to the junior team Visa Cash App RB. The Kiwi joined Red Bull at the start of 2025 to partner Max Verstappen following Sergio Perez's departure.

Liam Lawson’s performance in the Red Bull for the first two races of the season was subpar and rumors of the Kiwi driver being replaced for the Japanese GP started circling the paddock. Red Bull confirmed on March 27 that Tsunoda and Lawson will be swapping seats for the remainder of the season

Christian Horner’s statement about the driver swap read:

“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.”

Former F1TV analyst Will Buxton signed with FOX for the 2025 season as IndyCar's play-by-play announcer. The Briton came out and slammed Red Bull and Christian Horner for giving Lawson just a couple of races to show his talent, as he uploaded a tweet on X.

“Red Bull’s talk of their “duty of care” is laughable. You either believe in the driver you’ve signed and give them support or you don’t. They’ve played fast and loose with driver careers for decades but this is a new low. 2 races is insane. Good luck Yuki. You’re gonna need it,” read Will Buxton’s tweet.

Red Bull brought in Liam Lawson to replace Sergio Perez after the Mexican was sacked by the team following his underperformance during the 2024 season. Lawson crashed out at the Australian GP and finished P16 at the Chinese GP after qualifying dead last.

Will Buxton compares Max Verstappen to Alex Palou

Will Buxton in collaboration with IndyCar uploaded a video on Instagram where the Briton compared F1 drivers to their IndyCar counterparts. As Buxton moved from F1 to IndyCar, he uploaded the video to help the newer IndyCar fans understand what the open-wheel racing series drivers are like in comparison to F1 drivers.

Will Buxton compared Alex Palou to Max Verstappen as he detailed how both of them are young, have multiple champions under their belt, and are unstoppable. He said,

“Alex Palou, reigning champion, Max Verstappen, the man they all have to beat. Clinical, doesn't make mistakes, bloody hard to beat. Palou is Verstappen.”

IndyCar reporter Marshall Pruett recently questioned how Alex Palou would fare as Max Verstappen's teammate at Red Bull. Pruett detailed how Lawson has much more experience than Palou in F1, and that the Spaniard would struggle more than Liam did.