Max Verstappen shared a theory that Liam Lawson would potentially be performing better in a Racing Bulls machine, given its wider operating window.

He gave interviews in which he raised his eyebrows when describing why Racing Bulls were “very close to me”, but explained separately that, given how “extremely tough” the Red Bull is to maximise, that Lawson would potentially “go faster” with the sister squad.

Max Verstappen gives ‘cryptic’ response over Racing Bulls question

Verstappen’s new team-mate has endured a difficult start to life at Red Bull so far, with two separate P20 placings in Sprint and Grand Prix qualifying in China, following a Q1 exit in Australia last weekend.

While Lawson had never visited both circuits previously and running was limited, he admitted himself his outing in qualifying in Shanghai was “not good enough”, with work to be done to salvage points from his weekend.

Verstappen appeared to nod to the situation after the qualifying session, with both Racing Bulls drivers having appeared in Q3, while Verstappen gets set to line up fourth for the Chinese Grand Prix.

In a clip shared via Sky Sports F1’s social media accounts and labelled as a ‘cryptic’ response, the reigning World Champion was asked about the relative competitiveness of the Red Bull sister team next to his own pace.

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sky Sports F1 (@skysportsf1)

When asked in the media pen in China if he was ‘surprised’ by the performance of Racing Bulls, Verstappen replied: “I mean, they’re doing very well, they’re very close to me,” and with his eyes widened, added: “Maybe that also says something, but yeah, I don’t know.”

More on Liam Lawson’s difficult day in Chinese GP qualifying

👉 Is history about to repeat itself at Red Bull as Liam Lawson endures nightmare start?

👉 Winners and losers from the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix qualifying

It was not clear whether or not what Verstappen was referring to in that moment, be it the relative performance of his team-mate next to him or the improved speed of Red Bull’s sister team making them closer to him than anticipated.

Expanding further on the subject to Dutch media after qualifying, however, the reigning World Champion added that if Lawson was still driving with the sister squad, he would potentially be driving faster than he is now, given the “extremely tough” nature of the requirements of the Red Bull car.

“If you look at the difference between the two drivers at the other teams, they are all closer together,” Verstappen said, as per 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.”

Read next: Lewis Hamilton: SF-25 ‘tweaks’ moved car to ‘knife edge’ in Chinese GP quali