Ted Kravitz ‘sticks up’ for Liam Lawson after full agreement on where he ranks among F1’s 2025 rookies

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Liam Lawson had a tough 2025 Formula 1 season, becoming the latest victim of the dreaded Red Bull seat swap.

Unlike Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly before him, it’s hard to argue that Liam Lawson was given a real chance that he could cut ittoo alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull.

Two races, two Q1 exits and a crash and a P12 were enough for Red Bull to believe they made a mistake in promoting Lawson in the first place.

That resulted in Yuki Tsunoda replacing Lawson, only to see his Formula 1 status completely disappear at the end of 2025 as Red Bull couldn’t find a race seat for him next year.

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

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A stuttering return to Racing Bulls for Lawson was followed by a strong result in Austria and a marked improvement in his performances after the summer break.

A fifth-place finish in Baku before earning a new nickname at Interlagos for his defensive driving was enough to convince Red Bull to stick with the 23-year-old for another year.

Members of the Sky Sports punditry team were speaking about this year’s rookies and deciding where they ranked among themselves.

Ted Kravitz was quick to ‘stick up’ for Lawson after discovering where his colleagues placed him.

READ MORE: Who is Racing Bulls F1 driver Liam Lawson? Everything you need to know

Ted Kravitz sticks up for Liam Lawson after being ranked fifth among F1’s 2025 rookies

On The F1 Show, Kravitz, Karun Chandhok and Bernie Collins were ranking all of the rookies on the 2025 grid.

There was full agreement that Lawson was fifth on the list, only ahead of Franco Colapinto, with Jack Doohan not included, and Kravitz said: “I will stick up for Liam Lawson.

“He took a real hit, confidence-wise, after he got booted out of Red Bull Racing.

“[It] took at least six races to get over that. I remember when he got his speed back and actually delivered a pretty good qualifying session afterwards, and he was like, just now I’m starting to get some confidence back.

“And then scored some good points towards the end.

“So in a tight field, I would think he’s unlucky to be fifth, but versus Bortoleto, who would be my next one, I would say he is probably just behind Bortoleto.”

READ MORE: All to know about Racing Bulls from team principal to Red Bull affiliation

Does Liam Lawson have a long-term future at Red Bull?

The question every driver who rises through the ranks at Red Bull has to answer is whether they can prove to be the ideal teammate for Verstappen.

So far, six drivers and counting have proved that they weren’t what the Anglo-Austrian manufacturer was looking for.

Lawson’s chances of returning to Red Bull are tiny, meaning his best hope is to prove he’s a quick enough driver either to remain at Racing Bulls as a marker or convince another team on the grid to sign him.

Racing Bulls hope Lawson will mentor Arvid Lindblad through his first F1 season, but both have very different reasons for needing to beat their new teammate.

Several teams on the grid were interested in signing Lawson going into 2024, but Red Bull blocked his exit as they knew that he would potentially be needed to replace Ricciardo.

He might hope that interest returns next year if it looks like his prospects at Red Bull are beginning to dwindle.