Reports of Max Verstappen being unhappy over Red Bull’s decision to drop Liam Lawson for Yuki Tsunoda were only strengthened when he liked a critical post on the subject.

And now, Red Bull senior advisor and driver programme boss Helmut Marko has confirmed that their four-time World Champion “is not happy” about the decision the team has made, as he moved to stress why this is for the best, including in Verstappen‘s case.

Max Verstappen ‘not happy’ at Red Bull decision: Can they bring him around?

Having spent the last four seasons with Sergio Perez on the other side of the garage, Verstappen will already have a second new team-mate for the season only two rounds deep into F1 2025, with a harrowing start for Lawson – which produced zero points and a clean sweep of Q1 exits – triggering Red Bull to make a change.

But, reports began to emerge claiming that Red Bull’s decision had not gone down well with Verstappen, who in China, had spoken supportively about Lawson, with Red Bull’s RB21 not as competitive as the team had hoped for at this early point in the season.

This talk of a disgruntled Verstappen only increased when he liked an Instagram post from ex-Caterham F1 driver Giedo van der Garde, who had called confirmation of Liam Lawson’s demotion “closer to bullying or a panic”.

And Marko has now moved to end the speculation, by making it known officially that Verstappen is not happy with his team.

“We know Max is not happy,” Marko acknowledged in a De Telegraaf interview. “But we need two cars up front.

“Not only for the Constructors’ Championship, but also to help Max get his fifth World title. Then you can strategically achieve more in races.

“We can use Yuki’s experience and form well now. That’s what counts. At the end of the day, that benefits the team. And so that also means in Max’s favour.”

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Lawson qualified last for both the Sprint and Grand Prix in China, finishing the latter P15, with his final P12 result only made possible by disqualifications for Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton and Pierre Gasly.

However, Marko would move to point out several factors which he felt worked against the New Zealander in his short time at Red Bull Racing.

“Liam has had some bad luck,” Marko claimed. “During the test days in Bahrain, he missed a lot of time because of mechanical problems. And he also lost important time during the third free practice in Australia.

“Then the problems started. The pressure on him got bigger and bigger. He lost confidence, started trying harder and harder, but made more mistakes as a result.

“In China it went from bad to worse. On top of that, our car is very difficult to drive, and is not the fastest.”

Lawson returns to Racing Bulls as of the Japanese Grand Prix – Suzuka a track he knows well – and will partner Isack Hadjar, who has made an impressive start to life with the team as an F1 2025 rookie.

Tsunoda, meanwhile, after four seasons and a bit with the Red Bull junior team, will make his debut for the senior squad in front of his home fans.

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