The situation at Red Bull
Liam Lawson’s dismissal from Red Bull, with the New Zealander returning to Racing Bulls and Yuki Tsunoda being promoted in his place, has set a negative record in the history of the Milton Keynes team, which had never previously cut ties with a driver after just two races. The decision was made following the 23-year-old’s Q1 eliminations in Australia and China, as well as his final race finishes outside the points in both events. As a result, Red Bull found it necessary to quickly rely on a more experienced driver like Yuki Tsunoda in the fight for the Constructors’ Championship, with the Japanese driver having five seasons in F1 (all with Racing Bulls) compared to Liam Lawson’s 11 Grands Prix before 2025.
The double problem
However, even for the upcoming races, Yuki Tsunoda might not be the ultimate solution to these issues. The RB21, designed to suit Max Verstappen’s driving style, is proving to be a very difficult car to handle for all the drivers who have recently partnered with the four-time world champion. As a result, the struggles of Verstappen’s teammates are not necessarily due to their own faults or mistakes, as seen in Liam Lawson’s case. This is the view of Christian Danner, who competed in F1 during the late 1980s.
According to the German, interviewed by AvD Motorsport Magazin, Red Bull is not only suffering from issues with its second drivers but is also dealing with a car that has become difficult to manage even for Max Verstappen himself—at least to the extent that he can fight for victories and defend his title: “Red Bull has a double problem,” he explained. “They are not far enough ahead with Max to win races. This is the biggest issue of all, but further back, they thought Sergio Perez had forgotten how to drive, so he was replaced by a young talent. And what happened? Liam Lawson’s results were even worse. You have to take a very close look—what is really happening? Alexander Albon once explained Max Verstappen’s driving style very, very well in an interview, saying that he wants a car that is aggressive and active on the front axle. At first, you think you can drive it, but the more you do, the more undrivable it becomes for those who don’t have the talent to control a car using only the front end.”
What to do?
Danner sees a resemblance to the situation Gerhard Berger and Johnny Herbert experienced at Benetton when they were teammates with Michael Schumacher: “Gerhard took over Schumacher’s car, got in, and thought someone wanted to kill him,” he added. “The car was absolutely undrivable, but Michael won the World Championship with it. It’s a matter of driving style. It’s a philosophy that only a few, very few F1 drivers have managed to master. This doesn’t mean that another driver with a different style couldn’t be just as fast, but what Verstappen demands from his car is undrivable for normal drivers. What should the team do? Listen to the ‘boss’ and keep ensuring he gets what he wants, or make things a bit more balanced so that the second driver can benefit as well?”
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