By: An eerie silence hangs over Milton Keynes, and the most worrying thing is that nobody is saying anything. Unfortunately, as so often happens at Red Bull, a driver’s performances risk going unnoticed because of a turbulent past that perhaps should no longer carry so much weight.
Liam Lawson a victim of a turbulent past
We are, of course, talking about Liam Lawson. The New Zealander made his F1 debut in 2023 as Daniel Ricciardo’s replacement at the wheel of the AlphaTauri. He contested five races and scored two points at the Singapore Grand Prix. The following year, he was once again called upon to replace the Australian, starting from the Texas Grand Prix. He ended the season with four points.
In 2025, he was given the opportunity to race for Red Bull. However, the New Zealander completed only the Australian and Chinese Grands Prix. After just two races, management did not consider him up to the task and replaced him with Yuki Tsunoda. Showing one’s potential in only two races is certainly not the easiest thing in the world.
In 2026, he found himself at Racing Bulls, alongside Arvid Lindblad, regarded as Milton Keynes’ rising star. Arvid is hugely talented, finishing eighth on his debut and winning over the engineers in Faenza and at Red Bull. Lindblad is doing a tremendous job for a driver in his first season. Thirty-eight points with Racing Bulls are certainly no small feat, but what then should be said of the 61 Lawson has scored at the wheel of the VCARB-03?
The New Zealander is delivering an impeccable season: 61 points with VCARB and 14 in the three races he has contested for Red Bull as a replacement for the injured Hadjar (Netherlands, Italy, Madrid). Changing cars mid-season is never easy, yet Lawson failed to score points only at Monza, largely because a power unit change forced him to start from the back of the grid.
Liam Lawson’s drama, one shared by many
Moreover, even without taking into account his results with Red Bull, Liam has recorded a fifth place in Monaco and a sixth at Silverstone with VCARB. It is a sign of the driver’s considerable progress. For him, 2026 appears to be something of a season of redemption, but it is a shame that an aura of silence surrounds his name in Milton Keynes. There is talk of how well Lindblad is doing, of Hadjar’s strong results in his first season at Red Bull, but Lawson is barely discussed.
Unfortunately, in Milton Keynes, performances appear to matter only depending on the driver involved, and Lawson, unless there is a rethink or a change of direction, could face a drama that other drivers have experienced before him.
Photo: Red Bull Racing
