What Liam Lawson’s management are now saying about Red Bull future amid Audi links

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Liam Lawson knows the coming weeks will likely determine the course of his entire racing career. A key contract deadline looms for the New Zealander.

Red Bull have to find Lawson a seat by 1 September, according to reports. If not, he’s free to negotiate with other teams.

Executive director Helmut Marko confirmed Lawson will soon learn his fate. There are three possible scenarios at this stage.

The first is that he makes a sensational move to Red Bull in place of Sergio Perez. They may decide to drop the struggling Mexican and favour Lawson over the inconsistent Daniel Ricciardo.

The second is that Lawson replaces Ricciardo at RB. The team have already extended the contract of Yuki Tsunoda, but they’re unsure who deserves the second seat.

And the third is that Lawson leaves the Red Bull family to pursue opportunities elsewhere. In terms of the F1 grid, Audi are the most realistic option.

The 22-year-old has held talks over the possibility of partnering Nico Hulkenberg. He knows that he’s unlikely to ever race in F1 full-time if he misses out for a second straight season.

Liam Lawson and his camp want to ‘repay’ Red Bull

According to the New Zealand Herald, Lawson isn’t pushing to leave Red Bull even as they prevaricate. In fact, he’s ‘committed’ to the reigning world champions.

He wants to ‘repay the faith’ the team have placed in him since he was a teenager. He joined the Red Bull driver programme back in 2019.

• READ MORE: Who is Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson? Everything you need to know

This may indicate that Lawson is willing to give Christian Horner more time, rather than immediately leaving next month. Horner told him his time would come, and he may still expect him to be true to his word.

Equally, if he sticks around and Red Bull ultimately decide to keep their line-ups as they are, he may find himself out of options. He’s hoping to become the second confirmed rookie on the 2025 grid alongside Haas’ Oliver Bearman, with Jack Doohan and Kimi Antonelli also strong contenders at Alpine and Mercedes.

What Martin Brundle has said about Liam Lawson’s F1 future

McLaren development driver Gabriel Bortoleto would be ‘baffled’ if Red Bull overlooked Lawson again for 2025. In his mind, he clearly deserves the seat over Ricciardo.

He’s driven in five Formula 1 races so far, having stepped in when the Australian broke his wrist at the Dutch Grand Prix last year. His standout performance in an impressive stretch of races came in Singapore, when he finished ninth.

Martin Brundle says Red Bull have ‘got to’ release Lawson if they aren’t willing to give him a chance. He feels it would be unfair to dangle the promise of a seat in front of him if they don’t intend to follow through.

Marko wants RB to promote young talent again, having seen the team stagnate after producing legends like Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen. Much as Ricciardo has shown flashes of brilliance this year, his presence clearly contradicts that philosophy.