Liam Lawson is looking to put himself in contention for Sergio Perez’s seat with Red Bull making their demands clear to the New Zealander after an impressive start
Red Bull have made it clear to Liam Lawson that he must continue producing if he has any hope of landing a seat with them.
The New Zealander has wasted no time in making an impact in Formula 1 with some impressive showings at Austin and then in Mexico City. Lawson scored points on his debut and has underlined his desire to make ground when he’s been on track.
Drivers who’ve excelled in Red Bull’s junior team have often been rewarded with promotions and Lawson will be eyeing the seat alongside Max Verstappen. Sergio Perez’s spot remains precarious as he continues to underwhelm and the Mexican was involved in an on-track battle with Lawson at the weekend.
The youngster has not been overawed by the challenges he’s faced, giving it to Fernando Alonso during the race in Austin. Red Bull have shown themselves to be cut throat and Lawson knows he must keep producing.
He said: “Obviously the expectation is to carry on performing as well, so one weekend’s not enough to do too much. They’re obviously happy with how it went, but as I said, this is a very different style of circuit, so we have to really put a lot of effort into these weekends, honestly. The preparation is very, very important to how we end up performing.”
Red Bull handed Perez a new deal earlier this season and the team have stuck by him despite his struggles. He’s not been on the podium since the Chinese Grand Prix way back in April with the Austrian team struggling in the Constructors’ Championship.
Team boss Christian Horner admits they’ve done all they can to improve Perez’s results and the Mexican must understand F1 is a results business as he refused to confirm his seat for 2025.
He said: “Checo, again, has had a horrible weekend. Nothing has gone right for him. He knows F1 is a results-based business. Inevitably, when you’re not delivering, then the spotlight is firmly on you.”
“It [the scrutiny] is constant. It’s always there. From a team’s perspective, we are working with him as hard as we can to try and support him. I think we have done everything that we can to support Checo, and we will continue to do so in Brazil. But there comes a point in time that you can only do so much.”
Perez himself has questioned how successful Lawson will be following his opening two races – which have seen him clash with the Red Bull driver and Alonso.
He said: ‘I don’t have any relationship with him. I think the way he has come to Formula 1, I don’t think he has the right attitude for it. He needs to be a bit more humble.”