Liam Lawson must now regret turning down 27-podium Red Bull competitors after 2024 negotiations

Liam Lawson is fighting to save his Formula 1 career after Red Bull demoted him back to Racing Bulls. Yuki Tsunoda has replaced him just two races into the season.

Tsunoda is out of contract at the end of the season, and with Red Bull due to split with his backers, Honda, it looked as if he could lose his place on the F1 grid. But this week’s developments could change everything.

On the other hand, Lawson’s first full season in the sport may prove to be his last. One suspects that he simply has to beat rookie teammate Isack Hadjar if he wants to stay on the grid.

Red Bull are expected to promote F2 driver Arvid Lindblad for 2026, which likely means either Lawson or Hadjar will lose their seat. The New Zealander looks more vulnerable right now after he was ignominously dropped.

Lawson realised his dream when he joined Red Bull, but less than a year on, it’s conceivable that he could be out of F1 for good.

Red Bull driver Liam Lawson should have joined Sauber for 2025 after all

Christian Horner promised Lawson his time would come when it was announced that Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo would continue for 2024. In the months that followed, he sensibly explored his options elsewhere.

Lawson confirmed that he held talks with Red Bull’s competitors, saying: “I spent time getting to know everybody else just to make sure because obviously… I just wanted to make sure that I had all options covered.”

But who were the teams in question? Based on a report last July, Lawson held talks with Sauber over a 2025 seat.

How Sauber compare with Racing Bulls

They had already signed the veteran Nico Hulkenberg and were looking for a youngster to provide a balance. In the end, the seat went to Gabriel Bortoleto.

It’s worth noting that Sauber took until the penultimate race of the season to score points in 2024. They weren’t a particularly short-term option on that basis, but in 2026, they will become a works team as Audi take over.

Thus, while Lawson potentially faced some initial pain, he could have been part of an exciting project. There were worries that Lawson’s timeline wouldn’t align with Sauber – his exit clause didn’t become active until the autumn – but Mattia Binotto waited until the start of November to sign Bortoleto.

Liam Lawson has accidentally helped damaged-goods F1 driver get back on the grid

While the priority was, understandably, Red Bull, Lawson may now wish he’d taken the Sauber talks further. The benefit of hindsight comes into play, but there are also serious concerns over Helmut Marko’s treatment of young drivers.

Indeed, Lindblad arguably needs to get out of Red Bull, lest he suffer the same fate. Many drivers would view the seat alongside Verstappen as the ultimate poisoned chalice.

Sergio Perez was, in a sense, the exception as he lasted four seasons. But that arguably reflected a lack of confidence in the alternatives, rather than an overriding satisfaction with the Mexican.

Still, Mario Andretti says Lawson has made Perez look ‘very good’ this month. Andretti is an advisor to the Cadillac team and may now be lobbying for them to sign the 34-year-old after his damaging Red Bull exit.