Racing Bulls told they should have dropped Liam Lawson because he ‘always’ damages the car

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Liam Lawson was one of the final drivers to secure his seat on the 2026 grid. Racing Bulls announced just before the season finale in Abu Dhabi that he would continue, partnering rookie Arvid Lindblad.

The race for the last spot in the Red Bull F1 roster effectively came down to Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda, who were previously teammates at Racing Bulls. Both had unsuccessful stints alongside Max Verstappen in 2025.

Lawson lasted just two races but there’s an argument that his demotion saved his career. Max Verstappen thought the Racing Bulls car would be easier to drive, and the uptick in the New Zealander’s results supports that theory.

How would you rate Liam Lawson’s 2025 season out of 10?

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Equally, Tsunoda’s struggles in the dreaded second seat at Red Bull improved Lawson’s chances. Despite racing for a frontrunner, he ended the season with 33 points to Lawson’s 38.

Christijan Albers questions decision to keep Liam Lawson at Racing Bulls

Speaking on De Telegraaf’s F1 podcast, former driver Christijan Albers questioned Red Bull’s decision to relegate Tsunoda to the reserve driver role. He scored 94 points in 88 appearances for AlphaTauri/Racing Bulls.

What’s more, Albers says Lawson has a tendency to get involved in incidents. He retired from four races this season due to damage.

Ultimately, Red Bull have ‘always had more faith’ in Lawson than they have in Tsunoda. That was obvious when they picked him to replace Sergio Perez despite his relative lack of experience.

Albers said: “He scored a lot of points for Racing Bulls. He was very consistent, always in that top 10.

Journalist Erik van Haren replied: “Yeah, but I think they’ve always had more faith in Lawson. That’s why Lawson was promoted to Red Bull in the first place.

“I think they told him that they saw potential in him and they thought, ‘This really isn’t going to work out with Red Bull’, now let’s protect him from himself and put him back.’

Albers added: “There is always something going on with Lawson. With Lawson, it’s always the endplate, bargeboard, everything.”

What has Liam Lawson said about his aggressive driving style?

Lawson admits that he needs to ‘learn’ from a string of incidents in 2025. He admits he should have ‘conceded’ at times rather than risk needless damage.

It should be remembered that the Abu Dhabi GP was only his 35th race, the equivalent of less than one and a half seasons in today’s F1. He’s still in the learning phase.

Crucially, Lawson won the backing of Ford, who will supply engines to Red Bull and Racing Bulls next year. They pushed him to stay at Tsunoda’s expense.

Tsunoda allies Honda previously carried out that role. By keeping the Japanese driver on as a reserve, Red Bull ensured they’d have access to those engines for their TPC programme.