Christian Horner addresses speculation Liam Lawson could lose seat

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has refused to rule out the possibility that Liam Lawson could be replaced before the next round of the 2025 F1 season.

Lawson only joined Red Bull for the 2025 F1 season after being chosen as Sergio Perez’s replacement but his own future is hanging in the balance after a catastrophic start to the campaign.

After enduring a dismal start to the season which has seen him score no points and be knocked out in the first part of all three qualifying sessions he has contested, the 23-year-old Kiwi is at risk of losing his seat after just two races.

Red Bull are reportedly considering swapping Lawson with Racing Bulls driver Yuki Tsunoda as soon as the Japanese Grand Prix, the next F1 race this season.

Horner was grilled about this possibility following Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix and notably did not take the opportunity to deny the reports as incorrect.

“There's always going to be speculation in the paddock. As I say, we've only just finished the race here. We'll take away the info and have a good look at it,” Horner said. 

“There's nothing specific that's been set up. I think everything is purely speculative at the moment. I think Liam still has got potential. We're just not realising that at the moment.

“I'm not even going to comment on a change, because that would be your first headline. As I say, we're two races into this championship. We have a sample of two.

“We have quite a bit of information. We're going to go away and have a good look at it, and work with Liam and do the best that we can for him.

“I think the problem for him is he's had a couple of really tough weekends. He's got all the media on his back, a whole bunch. The pressure just naturally grows in this business, and I feel very sorry for him. You can see it's very tough on him at the moment.

“I think he's a young guy. We've got a duty to look after him and we're going to do the best that we can to support him. And, yes, Liam's still a very capable driver. We know that. We're just not seeing it for whatever reason. We're not seeing him able to deliver that at the moment.”

‘Not stupid’ Liam Lawson accepts reality of struggles

Amid his early struggles, Lawson has acknowledged he must perform to keep hold of his Red Bull F1 seat.

Although he stressed he needs time to familiarise himself with Red Bull’s tricky-to-drive RB21, he accepts he does not have that luxury on his side. 

"We knew it was going to be tough and we started from the pitlane to try something with the car, and it unfortunately just didn't work the way we wanted. What was really just a hard weekend was just a bit harder today,” Lawson said.

"Unfortunately, I don't really have time to get used to it, but I need to figure it out quickly. I don't have time to test the car and get used to it, but we're in the season already, so each race we're losing points. That's more or less what I mean when I don't have time.

"But I'm also not stupid and I know that, obviously, I'm here to perform – and if I'm not doing that, I'm not going to be around. I'm just focused on getting used to the car as quickly as I can."