Liam Lawson reveals that Red Bull informed him of his F1 fate for 2024 at the perhaps worst possible moment.
It is not uncommon for Red Bull and AlphaTauri to provide the biggest surprises in the F1 driver market. Helmut Marko’s trigger-happy approach to promoting and demoting drivers has created several twists already in 2023. However, perhaps the biggest revelation of the year – Liam Lawson – even caught Red Bull off guard.
After the dismissal of De Vries and the arrival of Daniel Ricciardo, all eyes were on the 8-time race winner. Amidst the uncertainty at Red Bull, the Australian was seen as an option to replace Perez for either 2024 or 2025. Considering his accolades in F1, this interpretation was understandable.
However, an injury in Zandvoort interrupted Ricciardo’s progression. This is where an unexpected opportunity arrived for Liam Lawson, who grasped it firmly with both hands.
The 21-year-old performed exceptionally well in The Netherlands before coming within touching distance of points in Monza – outperforming several experienced drivers. It was only in his third F1 weekend in Singapore that he managed to secure points.
Speaking on the Beyond The Grid Podcast, Lawson revealed that this achievement was a bitter-sweet moment:
“What I’m trying to achieve, ultimately, is a full-time seat. That’s what I’m trying to work towards.
“So yes, it was a really good feeling knowing, potentially, I’d make a big step in trying to achieve that.
“But I also knew before Singapore that I wasn’t driving, that I wasn’t going to get a seat next year. And I found out before qualifying.
“So the timing wasn’t great, and it was tough because nobody knew that. The media didn’t know.
“So after qualifying, the media is really positive and saying these great things of my chances of driving next year – but I knew that I wasn’t.”
Lawson’s current ability compared to Tsunoda and Ricciardo is both debatable and, due to limited data, unclear. What is impossible to deny, however, is the Kiwi driver’s potential to progress.
Most would struggle to make an impression in such a short time frame, but Lawson wasted no time. Red Bull has already outlined that the 21-year-old will have a full-time F1 seat in the foreseeable future.
As ever, it is difficult to predict how the next opportunity will present itself at AlphaTauri. Until then, Lawson has a chance to secure the Super Formula Championship at the first time of asking.
Considering his racing achievements to date, it would be unwise to write off his chances.
