Liam Lawson privately sent Red Bull ‘assertive’ message about his F1 future before replacing Daniel Ricciardo

Liam Lawson has had a pretty turbulent career in Formula 1 – and it has only been 13 races long so far.

The New Zealander got his first chance in the sport with the Red Bull junior team AlphaTauri in 2023. He replaced the injured Daniel Ricciardo – who had replaced Nyck de Vries after 10 races – when he broke his wrist at Zandvoort.

Lawson stood in for five races and impressed the team, including outqualifying Max Verstappen and scoring his first F1 points in Singapore. Despite his performances, Ricciardo returned to his seat in Austin, leaving the Kiwi driver to complete his Super Formula campaign.

Ricciardo signed on for 2024 alongside Yuki Tsunoda in the newly-branded Racing Bulls. The Aussie was expected to beat his teammate as he was being touted as a potential replacement for Sergio Perez at Red Bull.

However, Ricciardo struggled badly against Tsunoda as he scored 12 points to the Japanese driver’s 22 after the Singapore Grand Prix. The 35-year-old was sacked by Racing Bulls after that race, with Lawson replacing him for the remainder of the season.

Lawson admitted it was ‘brutal’ watching Ricciardo in 2024 as he knew he would only get his chance in F1 if the Aussie lost his seat. Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Natalie Pinkham revealed the message the 23-year-old sent privately to Red Bull after Ricciardo’s exit.

Liam Lawson told Red Bull he would leave if he did not get Daniel Ricciardo’s seat

Lawson was left on the sidelines as Red Bull’s reserve driver in 2024 after finishing second in Super Formula the year prior. The Milton Keynes-based outfit were being hampered by Sergio Perez’s poor form as they finished third in the constructors’ championship.

The New Zealander was clearly frustrated that he did not get the Racing Bulls seat outright last season after impressing in Ricciardo’s place. This is proven by Pinkham, who shared that the Kiwi driver told her he would have left Red Bull had he not got the seat.

“I think their pool talent has dried up. I think they didn’t have the answers at the end of last year or even throughout last year,” she said.

“They didn’t have an answer to Checo, they were looking around. They rushed the decision about Daniel, which was handled really badly.

“They pushed Liam in. Liam himself told me that if they hadn’t have done that, he would’ve been off. He said look: ‘I’ve told them, I’m not hanging about. If I don’t get the chance now, I’ve waited long enough.’

“So he became more assertive and his driving back that up, he was evidenced by some strong showings in the Racing Bull.”

READ MORE: Who is Racing Bulls F1 driver Liam Lawson? Everything you need to know

Is Liam Lawson now regretting not assessing his options after Red Bull demotion?

Lawson would go on to score four points in the final six races in 2024 as he put himself in the conversation for the second Red Bull seat. Perez was sacked at the end of the year after finishing eighth in the championship.

Sure enough, Lawson got the seat over Tsunoda – despite having less experience – for 2025 as the team felt he would be more equipped to face Verstappen. However, Christian Horner was proved wrong as the New Zealander is back at Racing Bulls after two races.

The 23-year-old had a dismal stint at Red Bull, getting knocked out of Q1 in every session and not scoring a point in Australia or China. He will return to the Faenza outfit, with Tsunoda replacing him for the Japanese Grand Prix.

Lawson is now the fourth driver to be dropped by Red Bull since 2019 – this being the most brutal after just two Grand Prix. While Lawson’s camp have welcomed the demotion back to Racing Bulls, there might be some regret about sticking around in the setup.

Lawson had held talks with Sauber for a 2025 seat when they were searching for Nico Hulkenberg’s teammate – they later signed Gabriel Bortoleto. While Sauber’s performance is lacking, Audi is an exciting project come 2026 and they certainly would have given the Kiwi driver more time to develop.

Lawson must be regretting turning down Sauber after his Red Bull stint went so wrong. However, a move back to Racing Bulls may be just what he needs to get his form back on track.