May 21 (GMM) Liam Lawson might struggle to stay in Formula 1 beyond 2025, according to another former Red Bull Racing driver.
Lawson, still arguably a rookie, was riding high at the beginning of the season as he had been selected over Yuki Tsunoda to be Max Verstappen’s new teammate at the energy drink company’s senior team.
He lasted two races – and after his demotion to Racing Bulls, the New Zealander continues to struggle, having yet to score a single point this season so far.
In contrast, all-new rookie Isack Hadjar has 7 points to his name and is regularly being hailed by Red Bull’s highly-influential Dr Helmut Marko.
Robert Doornbos, who contested just three grands prix for Red Bull Racing almost two decades ago, thinks Hadjar’s form is showing up the more experienced Lawson’s struggle.
“Liam Lawson is a shadow of his former self,” the Dutchman told Ziggo Sport.
“Isack Hadjar, his teammate and a rookie, is driving him to pieces every weekend. Hadjar has really become the team leader and is scoring good points. He was in the top five in Imola. He ended up ninth, but those are still good points.”
Initially outclassed by Verstappen, Doornbos thinks 23-year-old Lawson is now feeling the heat from even lower in Red Bull’s talent ranks. “He needs to be watching over his shoulder for new Red Bull talent who might take his place.”
Indeed, Red Bull is clearly fast-tracking the road to Formula 1 for 17-year-old F2 rookie Arvid Lindblad. Over the winter, he was sent to New Zealand to contest the Formula Regional Oceania series in order to get him over the line to qualify for a F1 super license.
“Honestly, I don’t know all the ins and outs of it,” he said recently. “I was just told ‘we want you to go to New Zealand, we want you to have the full super license before the start of the F1 season’.”
Bild newspaper also believes Lawson needs to be very nervous of Lindblad’s meteoric rise. “The English-born gem with Swedish roots is considered the greatest hope since Max Verstappen,” a recent report insisted.
Some think the Verstappen-Hadjar experience has destroyed Lawson’s confidence – although he denies that. “Honestly, I would say that I have never stopped driving with confidence,” he said at Imola.
“It’s been a tough year so far, with really complicated weekends, but personally, I have always felt comfortable in the car. I keep learning, that’s for sure, but that (confidence) hasn’t really changed.”
Racing Bulls, however, might still have the need for Lawson in 2026. That’s because Tsunoda’s Honda-backed days in the Red Bull family could be coming to an end, given the Japanese manufacturer’s looming move to Aston Martin.
1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve thinks Verstappen’s next teammate could well be Hadjar – making a Lawson-Lindblad pairing at Racing Bulls most likely.
“If I were Tsunoda,” Villeneuve told Sky, “I would be worried right now.
“Remember, Tsunoda was only ever there because of Honda. They didn’t (initially) put him in the main car this year because they don’t want Tsunoda. But they didn’t have a choice when Lawson wasn’t up to scratch.
“And they’re afraid that Hadjar is just too young, not ready, ‘let’s not burn him’. But he’s showing now that he might be ready,” Villeneuve added.
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