Liam Lawson reportedly set to be demoted after Chinese GP

Liam Lawson now runs the highest risk of being demoted from Red Bull to RB following a dismal outing in the Chinese weekend.

Liam Lawson reportedly set to be demoted after Chinese GP

Liam Lawson and Max Verstappen (Via Red Bull)

Liam Lawson received the Red Bull promotion for the 2025 season after a lot of hassle. The team looked at multiple options, primarily Yuki Tsunoda and Lawson. The Kiwi seemed to put forth better results than the Japanese which helped him ultimately move up the change. However, the 23-year-old has endured a highly challenging campaign in the two races of the 2025 season. Now, Milton Keynes is considering their options of replacing Lawson with another driver.

Liam Lawson‘s debut race with Red Bull in Australia was extremely disappointing for him. The Kiwi managed only a P18 start and eventually crashed out in the race. The Chinese weekend was no different as Lawson qualified last for both the Sprint and the main race. As such, the 23-year-old could not move up the pecking order in the Chinese GP and score any points for the team. Red Bull wanted immediate results after snubbing Sergio Perez in the previous season.

YouTube video

Lawson hasn’t been able to deliver any notable results that could help him continue racing for Red Bull. RB’s Yuki Tsunoda who was snubbed for the promotion has put forth some highly commendable results. The Japanese driver is much better in qualifying and race pace as compared to the secondary driver at Milton Keynes. This means that the 24-year-old now remains the prime contender to replace the Kiwi at the Austrian constructor.

According to reports by Autosport, Red Bull is now looking at their options to swap Lawson and Tsunoda as early as the upcoming Japanese GP. The 24-year-old might run his home race with a highly coveted seat at Red Bull if the team decides to swap them. Even Christian Horner and Helmut Marko remained secretive about their approach to the problems faced by the Kiwi. Hence, time will tell about what the Austrian constructor decides for the 23-year-old.

Christian Horner ponders upon the ‘mistake’ of replacing Sergio Perez with Liam Lawson

Sergio Perez’s performances were somewhat similar to what Liam Lawson is now showcasing on the grid. Perez was sacked similar to what Lawson could face in the upcoming weekend. Red Bull bought in the Kiwi over Yuki Tsunoda due to the former’s better performances in the test sessions.

However, the 23-year-old remains unable to deliver those said results in the actual race. As a result, Christian Horner put forth his opinion on making the mistake in driver choice.

Liam Lawson and Christian Horner (via Red Bull)
Liam Lawson and Christian Horner (via Red Bull)

Horner remained neutral in his approach and tried not to reveal too much about Red Bull’s decision on Lawson’s future. Following a dismal outing in the Sprint race and Qualifying, the Team Principal reckoned that the 23-year-old suffered from a tough day in the office.

The 51-year-old reveals that he would take a good look at the results and only then take a decision. The Briton reiterated that they would try to provide the debutant with a better chassis and then take a look at the situation again.

It’s been a tough day at the office for him today so we’ll have a good look at it and go through it and obviously try and give him the best car we can, As I say, we’ll have a good look at it and we’ll do what we can.

Christian Horner told Sky Sports

Liam Lawson asserts he doesn’t have ‘time’ to improve at Red Bull

Max Verstappen has been known to destroy the career of his teammates due to his superior performances on the grid. The Dutchman has kept up with the impressive performances despite the challenger being extremely difficult to deal with. Liam Lawson was expected to deliver from his very first race against Verstappen. As depicted by the results, the Kiwi couldn’t do so as he talked about the negative side of his career at Red Bull.

Liam Lawson (via Red Bull)
Liam Lawson (via Red Bull)

Lawson insisted that performing well at Red Bull remained really tough for him. The 23-year-old reckoned that the window to perform well was very small in the chassis which wasn’t a good enough excuse. The Kiwi believes that he needs some time to improve with the team which might not be possible now. He noted that unfortunately, he did not have the comfort of any more time to deliver results and secure his seat with the Austrian constructor.

It’s just really tough, honestly, I think the window’s really small – I mean, that’s known – but honestly, it’s not an excuse.It’s just time. Unfortunately, I don’t really have time.

Liam Lawson told Sky Sports.

Red Bull is set to discuss further upon the matter after the Chinese weekend ahead of heading to Japan. The final result could be delivered as early as next week as the team rushes to consider all of their options.

Tsunoda has a great opportunity in his hands to finally achieve the coveted promotion to Red Bull. However, nothing is certain as of now since Lawson has only run two races this season and might improve in the coming races. Still, Verstappen believes that the Kiwi would be better off driving at RB due to their challenger being easier to handle.