Amidst reports he wasn’t happy with Red Bull considering a driver swap, Max Verstappen has liked a post from Giedo van der Garde calling confirmation of Liam Lawson’s demotion “closer to bullying or a panic”.

Red Bull announced on Thursday that Lawson would return to Racing Bulls with immediate effect, and that Yuki Tsunoda would take his Red Bull seat.

What does Max Verstappen think of Liam Lawson’s axing?

That decision was made just two races into the F1 2025 championship.

Although Lawson himself accepted in Shanghai that the performances he had put in were “not good enough”, Red Bull’s decision to swing the axe after only two races shocked many in the paddock.

The team was urged to give the New Zealander at least one more race, Suzuka which he knows, by David Coulthard, Guenther Steiner and others, but they opted against it.

Team principal Christian Horner put it down to the a “duty of care to protect and develop” Lawson amidst his struggles.

He added: “We see that after such a difficult start, it makes sense to act quickly so Liam can gain experience, as he continues his F1 career with Visa Cash App Racing Bulls, an environment and a team he knows very well.”

But with Helmut Marko blatantly calling Lawson’s promotion a “mistake”, former F1 driver van der Garde has accused Red Bull of “bullying” and “panic”.

Van der Garde wrote on Instagram: “I’m getting a bit tired of all the comments that F1 is the toughest sport in terms of performances and when you’re underdeliver you’ve gotta face the consequences.

“Yes, you gotta perform. Yes, the pressure is insane.

“But in my opinion this comes closer to bullying or a panic move than actual high athlete achievements. They made a decision – fully aware – gave Liam two races only to crush his spirit. Don’t forget the dedication, hard work and success Liam has put in his career so far to achieve the level where he is now.

“I remember my own blood, sweat and tears – and that was to reach F1. Let alone driving for an absolute top team.

“Yes, he underperformed the first two races – but if anyone’s aware of that it’s himself. Perhaps he has suggested this himself, but if not, I wish Liam all the strength and courage to get to the grid in Japan.

“Trust yourself, get your head up, prove them wrong.”

He tagged Lawson at the end of his post.

But the more interesting part, it was ‘liked’ by Max Verstappen.

The Red Bull driver’s ‘like’ comes in the wake of reports that the Dutchman was not in favour of Red Bull’s decision to drop Lawson for Tsunoda.

De Telegraaf reported earlier this week that ‘one can guess what Verstappen himself thinks of the decision of Red Bull’s management to victimise Liam Lawson after only two races in favour of Yuki Tsunoda.

‘The Limburger (where Max Verstappen is from) disagrees with the team management’s decision to intervene so soon.’

It was a sentiment echoed by Britain’s Daily Mail, which claimed that ‘sources close to Red Bull’ had said Verstappen wasn’t happy with Red Bull’s antics.

“It is totally unfair to treat Liam like this,” said the unnamed contact. “You have to give him more than two races to prove himself after he has worked for this opportunity all his life.

“He may not have done well, no argument over that. But to ditch him so fast is seriously bad. It smacks of a team in chaos.”

F1-Insider also reported that the 27-year-old ‘isn’t happy’ with Red Bull’s heavy-handedness as he fears it could ‘ruin’ Lawson’s fledgling career.

But while Verstappen has yet to officially comment on Red Bull’s decision to drop Lawson, he did imply at the Chinese Grand Prix that his team-mate’s troubles could be more down to the car than the driver.

“If you look at the difference between the two drivers at the other teams, they are all closer together,” Verstappen told De Telegraaf.

“It also shows that our car is extremely tough. I think if you put Liam in the Racing Bulls car, he will go faster. I really think so.

“That car is easier to drive than ours. I also notice that when I talk to Liam. Last year, I didn’t think the difference between him and Yuki Tsunoda was that big. Otherwise the team wouldn’t make the choice to put him in at Red Bull either.”

Either way, Lawson is back at Racing Bulls, and Tsunoda is Verstappen’s newest Red Bull team-mate.

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