Melbourne is hosting the opening Formula 1 race of the season for the first time since 2019 and will see a host of exciting changes in the paddock come to fruition after a long winter break.
McLaren are the only leading F1 team who have stuck with both of their drivers going into the Australian Grand Prix, with Drivers’ Championship holder Max Verstappen welcoming a new teammate to Red Bull.
Team principal Christian Horner decided to replace Sergio Perez and promote Racing Bulls star Liam Lawson.
It was a blow for his more experienced teammate Yuki Tsunoda – who missed out on a seat alongside Verstappen again – but excitement is growing in New Zealand for their newest star driver to be placed in a potentially race-winning car.
Lawson has security over his Red Bull future for the first time which he believes will help him prepare for the 2025 campaign.
Racing alongside Verstappen has broken several very impressive F1 drivers before Lawson, including Perez, meaning he’ll have to be very careful about the expectations he places on himself and adapting to driving a very difficult car to handle that’s been built to magnify the Dutchman’s strengths.
Working with Helmut Marko has helped Lawson prepare for battling Verstappen the 21-year-old believes, but after speaking to Stuff.co.nz, he’s not quite as confident for his opening race with the team at Albert Park in March.
Liam Lawson expects ‘very tough’ Red Bull debut race at the Australian Grand Prix
Lawson was asked how excited he was about the season starting and joining Red Bull and explained: “It’s exciting, especially with Melbourne up first.
“I would love to have a race in New Zealand, that’s the dream one day, but Melbourne’s the closest thing.
READ MORE: Who is Red Bull Racing F1 driver Liam Lawson? Everything you need to know
“It’s exciting but as I said, it’s a track I haven’t done and it’s going to be really, really tough.
“We have three practice sessions, and [we need] to try and make the most of that.
“We don’t really do much pre-season testing, in fact, we do one test which everybody does together.
“It’s going to be hard but I’m just excited. Obviously, now I have the opportunity laid out in front of me, it’s up to me to make the most of it and deliver.”
Red Bull hoping for a better 2025 Australian GP after last year’s Max Verstappen disaster
Last season looked set to be a repeat of the 2023 campaign when Red Bull’s two drivers finished first and second at the opening two Grand Prix of the year.
They arrived in Australia with a decent advantage over closest rivals Ferrari before the weekend started to unravel.
Verstappen qualified on pole alongside Carlos Sainz who had just returned from having his appendix removed, with Perez starting P6 after impeding Nico Hulkenberg during Q1.
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However, Verstappen’s race lasted just a couple of laps as his Red Bull was affected by a rare mechanical fault.
Perez’s race didn’t go much better and despite Verstappen’s retirement, he wasn’t able to make up any more positions, finishing behind both Ferrari and McLaren drivers.
The Mexican achieved podiums in the next two races in Japan and China, but that might be the last time he experiences an F1 rostrum after finishing the campaign with a run of 18 Grand Prix without a top-three finish.
