Liam Lawson issued private verdict on Sergio Perez’s Red Bull complaints after recent tyre test

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Liam Lawson is trying to take Sergio Perez’s seat at Red Bull for the 2025 season. He’s auditioning for the drive at junior team RB while Perez desperately tries to find an improvement alongside Max Verstappen.

Perez left reporters ‘gobsmacked’ ahead of his home race in Mexico when he admitted that he’d had a ‘terrible’ season. But he’s repeatedly blamed his unpredictable RB20 for his poor results.

Max Verstappen also complained about the handling of the car during a difficult run either side of the summer break. Between Hungary in July and Azerbaijan in September, Red Bull only scored one podium finish.

It was a run that saw them relinquish the lead of the constructors’ championship to McLaren, with Ferrari now looking to demote them to third. Verstappen also came under threat from Lando Norris in the drivers’.

However, Red Bull identified the root cause of their issues in Italy and have now acted on it, enabling Verstappen to finish as the runner-up in Singapore and win the Sprint race in Austin. Perez has yet to demonstrate any improvement.

In fact, he’s only scored 11 points in the last four events. Perez would point out that he was on for a podium in Baku before a late tangle with Carlos Sainz – deemed a racing incident – but Red Bull need results.

Liam Lawson agreed with Sergio Perez on ‘toxic’ Red Bull car

Red Bull will largely make their 2025 decision based on how Lawson fares in his six-race stint at RB. But they will also use data from his testing appearances in the RB20.

The 22-year-old drove the car at Silverstone as part of a filming day in the summer. And then, before his return at the US Grand Prix, he got behind the wheel at Mugello in Italy for a Pirelli tyre test.

Even though Lawson outpaced Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in the session, F1 insider Ralf Bach says he was unhappy with the car. In a boost for Perez, he made similar complaints about the ‘toxic’ balance.

“I’ve heard from Red Bull,” Bach said. “Lawson drove the current Red Bull in a tyre test and said something similar [to Perez]. He must have said ‘wow, that’s the most toxic car in Formula 1, that’s difficult to drive’.”

Martin Brundle warns Red Bull they could face contract issue if they sack Sergio Perez

Red Bull engineers apologised to Perez before the race in Singapore last month. It looked as if he was consolidating his position, but he’s now failed to keep pace with the team’s improvement.

Now, according to Auto Motor und Sport’s Michael Schmidt, Red Bull are ‘depressed’ about the Perez issue. They don’t want to discuss it any more after months of trying to find solutions.

Christian Horner tried to boost his driver’s confidence by handing him a new deal in June. But that’s a decision he may now regret.

Indeed, Martin Brundle fears Red Bull could face a contractual problem if they sack Perez at the end of the year. His one-plus-one deal was supposed to guarantee him a 2025 seat.