Christian Horner shares what Liam Lawson did in private Red Bull tests before replacing Daniel Ricciardo

Follow us on Google Discover

Liam Lawson will be back in a Formula 1 car at the United States Grand Prix after replacing Daniel Ricciardo. It’s the second successive year that RB have made a mid-season driver change.

In 2023, Nyck de Vries lost his drive following the British GP in mid-July. Ricciardo impressed the team in a subsequent test at Silverstone, triggering the swap.

However, the Australian would only be able to complete two Grands Prix himself before suffering an injury at Zandvoort. Ricciardo’s crash cost him his ‘goodwill’ behind the scenes at Red Bull.

Lawson took over for the next five races, giving him the platform to impress alongside Yuki Tsunoda. It wasn’t enough to earn a full-time 2024 drive, but it put him at the forefront of Red Bull’s thoughts.

The 22-year-old has been carrying out a reserve role for both teams. Regularly seen in the RB garage during the sessions, he’s also been testing behind the scenes.

There have been persistent rumours that he could replace Ricciardo since the start of the year. And Red Bull have now granted him a six-race audition for the 2025 season.

Christian Horner’s ‘very encouraging’ verdict on Liam Lawson tests

During an appearance on the F1 Nation podcast, Christian Horner explained what Lawson had done to merit a promotion. In his eyes, it was a combination of his 2023 cameo and his 2024 work behind the scenes.

Horner isn’t ‘sure’ whether Lawson is as good as Kimi Antonelli, the driver signed to replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, or Ferrari academy talent Oliver Bearman, who’s joining Haas. But the New Zealander’s testing displays have eased any concerns.

Previous reports claimed Lawson’s test at Silverstone was ‘underwhelming’, but Horner says otherwise. They were able to compare his data with that of Max Verstappen and, more to the point, Sergio Perez.

“Last year, Liam jumped in and he beat Yuki in Singapore and Japan and was quick from the outset,” he said. “And he’s a tough racer. We know that he’s very adaptable. And certainly, the testing that he’s done for us in the Red Bull Racing car this year has been very, very encouraging.”

Liam Lawson has already dropped hint about his 2025 plans after replacing Daniel Ricciardo

Red Bull could have waited until 2025 to re-introduce Lawson. That would have afforded Ricciardo the kind of farewell many of his fans felt he deserved.

Horner says Tsunoda has ‘no chance’, so barring an unforeseen improvement from the 35-year-old that would have meant retaining Perez. And Red Bull are clearly somewhat reluctant to do so in the face of his underperformance.

Over the course of six Grands Prix and three Sprints, Lawson can make his case to partner Verstappen next year. That, in turn, would likely mean a promotion for F2 title contender Isack Hadjar.

Lawson says he’s focused on RB at this point. Privately, he may have bigger ambitions, but he needs to remain humble until he’s delivered in the VCARB 01.