Liam Lawson discussing his future in F1 and the new documentary about his season in 2023 named 'In the wings'. Video / Ben Dickens
Liam Lawson will undergo another Formula One test drive with Red Bull at a time when speculation over the team’s line-up has intensified.
With Formula One now on its mid-season break, the Kiwi will complete a test drive of the 2022 AlphaTauri car at Imola next week in abid to press his case for a fulltime place on the grid.
Lawson is already familiar with that car, having previously driven in practice for both the Belgian and Mexican Grand Prix two years ago, as part of Formula One’s young driver programme.
The test drive will be Lawson’s second of the season after completing a similar opportunity at Silverstone following the British Grand Prix this month. It will also be Red Bull’s final filming day of the season, as a chance for the team to get time on track for promotional purposes.
As speculation continues to swirl over the future of Sergio Perez in the Red Bull senior team, Lawson is comfortably poised to step into a fulltime seat if the team decide to make a change.
Perez, 34, has struggled since penning a new contract with Red Bull this year. Despite starting the season with four podiums in the first five races of 2024, he has returned only 28 points from his past eight races.
That new contract is also understood to contain a performance clause, meaning Red Bull can terminate his deal if he trails teammate Max Verstappen by more than 100 points at the summer break. Following today’s Belgian Grand Prix, where he finished seventh, Perez trails the Dutchman by 146 points.
Perez did qualify second at Spa, but his time was more than half a second back from Verstappen, who started 11th after a grid penalty for changing his engine.
Intriguingly, it has also been reported that Lawson’s Red Bull stablemate, Daniel Ricciardo, will also be part of the filming day at Imola, leading to speculation of an effective shootout between the two drivers.
Daniel Ricciardo (left) and Liam Lawson are vying for the same F1 seat. Photo / Getty Images
English outlet the Mirror reports the testing at Imola will be used to evaluate both Lawson and Ricciardo in equal cars to determine which driver is better placed to partner Verstappen, should a change be made.
Should that be the case, Lawson’s experience in the 2022 AlphaTauri car will be a huge advantage in the Kiwi’s favour.
Depending on results, it is within the realm of possibility that Perez be axed, with either Lawson or Ricciardo being awarded a place with Red Bull, and the other driving for sister team Racing Bulls.
However, Perez’s commercial value to Red Bull – he is the only Mexican driver on the grid – could also have him drop down into Racing Bulls. The Mexican Grand Prix will be raced on October 28 (NZT).
Another of Lawson’s stablemates, Yuki Tsunoda, will also be involved at the test, but is understood to not be considered for the Red Bull second seat.
Japanese Tsunoda’s place with Red Bull is strengthened by his links to Honda, who supply engines for their two teams. However, that deal will end after the 2025 season – the same time Tsunoda’s contract expires – in order to link up with Aston Martin.
Much of the speculation this year has pitted Lawson against Ricciardo, as Red Bull adviser and head of youth development Helmut Marko repeatedly emphasised the need for Racing Bulls to be a junior team as opposed to a sister team.
But while Lawson is backed by Marko, Ricciardo has been afforded the same support from Christian Horner, Red Bull’s senior team principal.
Ricciardo has been instrumental in Formula One’s explosion in popularity since 2020, thanks to his central role in the Netflix Drive to Survive documentary series.
Also pressing for Red Bull is the fact that Lawson’s contract contains an exit clause should the team not offer him a seat for the 2025 season by a certain date. The Herald understands that date is in September.
Last month, it was reported Audi, which will soon take over the Sauber team, were interested in Lawson should they miss out on signing Carlos Sainz from Ferrari.
However, Lawson’s management has told the Herald he is committed to staying at Red Bull, who have backed him since he was 17.
Likewise, Red Bull are understood to be hesitant to lose Lawson, having invested millions in his development.
Red Bull have backed the Kiwi through junior categories Formula Three, Formula Two and the Japanese Super Formula championship.
Lawson’s management team told the Herald they were unaware of Red Bull’s intentions for him, but expected to learn during the mid-season break.
Alex Powell is an online sports editor for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016 and previously worked for both Newshub and 1News.
