Liam Lawson risks becoming a ‘permanent’ Racing Bulls driver in F1 after missed Red Bull chance

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Liam Lawson could end up spending his whole F1 ‘career’ at Racing Bulls after missing his chance at Red Bull, according to one journalist. Lawson lasted just two races at the top team in early 2025.

The regime that hired and fired Lawson has now moved on, and Laurent Mekies has accepted that Red Bull are responsible for the struggles of several drivers alongside Max Verstappen. But that doesn’t mean that the Kiwi is likely to get another chance.

Verstappen’s potential retirement could open up a fresh vacancy at the Milton Keynes outfit, but the consensus on The Race F1 podcast was that Lawson’s 18-year-old teammate Arvid Lindblad is best placed to fill it.

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Could Liam Lawson become another Pierre Gasly?

Scott Mitchell-Malm says Lawson may be overcoming the ‘ridiculous career uncertainty’ that marked his early years in F1. He began as a substitute for an injured Daniel Ricciardo in 2023 and was then given a six-race audition after replacing the Australian at the end of 2024.

Lawson was fighting to stay on the grid after his Red Bull demotion, and while he now looks more secure, he may lack upward mobility.

The 24-year-old risks being used as a ‘reference’ for younger Red Bull products like Lindblad and Isack Hadjar. Pierre Gasly found himself in a similar position after he was on the wrong end of a seat swap with Alex Albon in 2019.

Red Bull demoted Liam Lawson back to Racing Bulls exactly one year ago 🗓️ How do you rate his last 12 months in F1 out of 10? 🤔

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Gasly raced alongside Daniil Kvyat and Yuki Tsunoda before leaving at the end of 2022 when Alpine made him an offer.

Mitchell-Malm said: “There’s a genuine chance, with the way that the whole Red Bull ecosystem is, especially if Verstappen disappears for a bit, Lawson’s going to go from the driver with the most ridiculous career uncertainty to basically being just a permanent, career second-team driver as the reference.

Host Edd Straw replied: “Something Gasly’s had some success out of, and he’s got himself a big move.”

Lawson has previously attracted interest from Audi, though that may have been driven by their now-departed team principal Jonathan Wheatley.

Liam Lawson could have a brand-new Racing Bulls teammate in 2027

With Lindblad picked to replace Verstappen, the vacancy at Racing Bulls could be filled by Nikola Tsolov. The 19-year-old Bulgarian finished runner-up in last year’s F3 championship.

He also started his first full F2 campaign by winning the Feature Race in Australia, strengthening Mitchell-Malm’s impression that he’s the ‘real deal’.

Lawson could end up partnering a third different rookie in three seasons if Tsolov can maintain his trajectory.

“He’s looking like someone who could potentially be the real deal in terms of an F1 prospect,” said Mitchell-Malm.

“I’m not going to say real deal in terms of a Red Bull Racing driver for sure in the future, but if you’ve got that gap, if you keep Lawson in as your continuity, experienced option, [he could drive for Racing Bulls].”