Liam Lawson, who filled in for the injured Daniel Ricciardo in five races last year, has coped very well with the tasks, confirming that he is ready for Formula 1, but for now he is acting as a reserve driver.
Christian Horner was recently quoted in the press as saying that Lawson is a very talented athlete, but nothing is guaranteed for him yet. Peter Bayer, executive director of the Visa RB team, holds the same position.
“For now, it’s too early to talk about anything, everything will depend on the situation in the pilot market in general,” P. Bayer emphasized to the Speedcafe publication. – If there are changes in the composition of our team, it can be said with a high probability that we will vote for Lawson.
But it is too early to think about it. We don’t know how things will continue in the Red Bull team. By the way, when Fernando Alonso decided to stay at Aston Martin, it all resembled a game of rapid chess.
I believe the decision on Lawson will be made this year. But he remains our reserve athlete for the time being and we officially declare that Liam is our number one candidate if a spot in the team becomes available.”
But if the Red Bull concern cannot offer the 22-year-old pilot from New Zealand the position of main pilot in 2025, then he will be released from all obligations and will be able to offer his services to other teams.
By the way, Red Bull’s advisor Helmut Marko has emphasized that they would like to give Lawson the opportunity to appear this year. Theoretically, such a chance could arise if, for example, Daniel Ricciardo falls far behind Yuki Tsunoda and does not get points already in the next stages.
A far more complicated roster could be if Max Verstappen decides to leave Red Bull, although his contract with the world champions runs until 2028. There are quite a lot of different kinds of rumors on this topic, but this option is less likely than the other option, according to which both current drivers – Verstappen and Perez – will remain in their places.
On the other hand, the Mexican is quite confident and together with Verstappen has already won three winning doubles.
However, for now Carlos Sainz has not made up his mind about 2025, so it cannot be ruled out that Red Bull can resume cooperation with the fast and experienced Spaniard and then events would develop according to a completely different scenario.
In conclusion, it is worth recalling the old proverb: “Everything is possible in Formula 1”.
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