Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner has responded to mounting speculation over Liam Lawson’s immediate future with the team following another difficult weekend for the rookie driver at the Chinese Grand Prix.
After crashing out in Melbourne and qualifying last in both the Sprint and main qualifying sessions in Shanghai, Lawson again failed to impress, finishing 15th before being promoted to 12th due to post-race disqualifications. The 23-year-old New Zealander started from the pit lane for the second consecutive race after significant set-up changes were made ahead of Sunday’s Grand Prix.
Facing persistent questions from the media, Horner acknowledged Lawson’s struggles but urged patience. “Liam’s had a tough couple of races… we managed to get 56 laps of reasonable data from that,” he said. “We’ll take that away, have a good look at it, and as a group we’ll do our best to support him.”
Asked directly about rumors that Red Bull could replace Lawson as early as the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, Horner downplayed the reports. “There’s always going to be speculation in the paddock,” he said. “We’ve just finished the race here… everything is purely speculative at the moment.”
Horner defended Lawson’s potential but admitted that pressure has started to mount. “He’s a young guy, we’ve got a duty to look after him,” he said. “Liam’s still a very capable driver… we’re just not seeing him able to deliver that at the moment.”
While Horner acknowledged being impressed by Racing Bulls drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Isack Hadjar, he refused to entertain the idea of a replacement. “I’m not even going to comment on a change, because that will be your first headline,” he said.
Horner concluded that the team would review the available data in detail before making any deci
