Liam Lawson shocked the F1 world with his speed and adaptability this year. Looking ahead to 2024, Red Bull is eager to assess his level.
Red Bull’s driver selections are often sources of controversy, and this season was no exception. A total of four drivers raced with AlphaTauri this year – something almost unheard of in modern Formula 1.
The initial swap of Nyck de Vries for Daniel Ricciardo was somewhat planned – but the team certainly didn’t anticipate the Australian to suffer an injury in Zandovort.
This is where Liam Lawson burst onto the scene, taking advantage of an unlikely opportunity to prove his abilities.
Lawson was especially impressive in Italy, Singapore and Japan – adapting to the AT04 in weeks. The Kiwi ticked off two key milestones, reaching Q3 and scoring points for the Faenza outfit.
In just a handful of races, the 21-year-old earned huge acclaim amongst F1 fans and media alike. As a result, AlphaTauri’s decision to retain Tsunoda and Ricciardo for 2024 was received quite harshly.
After all, the Italian outfit – in theory – is designed to develop young drivers like Liam Lawson. Aside from his obvious potential, the Kiwi shows no signs of needing a learning curve to acclimatise.
Speaking in a recent interview, however, Helmut Marko revealed that Red Bull has plans for Lawson in 2024.
This was Marko’s response to a question about whether Lawson will be in F1 by 2025:
“Yes, and before that, he should at least drive a few more races,” he told oe24.
“So that we can see where his potential really lies.”
LWOS reported on this earlier in the year, with most indications suggesting he would return to F1 before 2025. Even the framing of AlphaTauri’s 2024 driver announcement (which included Liam Lawson) pointed towards the Kiwi’s return being imminent.
These quotes from Red Bull’s Helmut Marko are further confirmation of these suspicions. Some might interpret these comments as a guarantee that Lawson will race on the grid during the 2024 season.
This would mean another season of mid-season changes instigated by Red Bull.
Although this conclusion can’t be reached with complete certainty, there is no doubt that Lawson’s development is a priority.
After all, the Austrian team wants to avoid the mistakes that Alpine made with Oscar Piastri.
Even before January 1st, F1’s heavily anticipated “silly season” looks to be set in motion.
