Carlos Sainz was on Red Bull’s agenda, but Marko and the team’s directors decided to go for Liam Lawson last December. Today, with the abrupt replacement of the New Zealander by Yuki Tsunoda, an internal storm has broken out that not even Max Verstappen, the four-time world champion, has been able to contain.
Red Bull needs two competitive cars, but it ignored Carlos Sainz
In fact, the entourage of Verstappen, who in the past managed to block the arrival of Carlos Sainz to the team, has not managed this time to stop a technical decision that has left a bitter taste in Milton Keynes. After only two grands prix behind the wheel of the RB21, Liam Lawson was removed from the starting lineup and sent back to the satellite structure, Racing Bulls.
In his place, Yuki Tsunoda will be in the main car from the Japanese Grand Prix. This move has not been welcomed by Verstappen, who did not hesitate to show his disagreement, albeit discreetly, with a “like” on a post critical of the team.
Red Bull Racing’s argument is clear: they need two competitive cars to fight not only for the constructors’ championship, but also to provide strategic support to Max Verstappen on his way to a fifth Formula 1 world title. Here, of course, there is no need to look any further to see that, once again, Red Bull made the wrong choice in choosing Lawson.
A mistake that could have been solved if, at the time, when Sergio Pérez was having his worst nightmares on the track, they had chosen to call Carlos Sainz, who had not yet signed with Williams. At that time, the Spaniard was looking for a team that could offer him one thing: a car with opportunities for growth in the future. In the end he chose Williams, which was already taking steps forward with the great performances of the Argentine Franco Colapinto.
Before the summer, there was talk of an immediate replacement for Pérez; Carlos Sainz was still without a team
In fact, before the summer break, before Carlos signed the contract with Williams, the continuity of Sergio was already in question, there were thoughts of an immediate replacement for the Mexican… and ‘Checo’s’ contract was renewed to see if the peace of mind of the renewal would lead to recovery.
“There were circumstances at Red Bull and Mercedes that would make for a whole chapter and you’re not going to get anything more out of me about these situations because I don’t think it’s worth it. It was the perfect storm with Toto Wolff waiting to see if Verstappen was available, the circumstances of Checo Pérez at Red Bull are well known… circumstances arose that closed the doors of the two best teams to us,” Carlos Sainz senior described on the podcast ‘The After Lap’ about how his son moved during 2024.
“We spoke to practically all the teams on the grid. It was not an easy decision and it evolved over the months. Like it or not, something affected him when the doors of Red Bull and Mercedes closed. Then he changed the chip when he signed with Williams and had a great end to the season,” concluded the veteran rally driver.
Red Bull regrets
The harsh reality, and perhaps Red Bull’s first mistake, was to dismiss Carlos Sainz at the time. His departure from Ferrari was a reality, and Sergio Pérez’s poor results augured a change in the pit. While there was uncertainty with Verstappen, Red Bull’s idea was clear: to have a pair to win absolutely everything. And that, with Pérez, was not going to happen. That’s when they decided to pull from their academy. Christian Horner and Helmut Marko bet on Liam Lawson, but they did so with their mouths shut. They had confidence, but not much. Yuki Tsunoda was waiting in the wings, but this whole situation could have been avoided.
A decision that Red Bull now regrets. Not for betting on the New Zealander, but for letting the Spaniard slip away. “I think Carlos is a great driver and we’ve seen that this year, obviously. Sometimes you have to take into account different criteria and dynamics, and when we extended Pérez’s contract, you have to remember that he was second in the world championship and that he was on the podium in the first four of the five races,” explained Horner last December, who regretted letting Carlos Sainz get away.
It is difficult to explain why Helmut Marko and Christian Horner’s successful quarry went from having three top picks to just one, and thank you. But their moves since then have been driven by two impulses: blind faith in Verstappen, reciprocated by the Dutchman’s talent and results but which scared Ricciardo away, and a serious planning error in letting Carlos Sainz slip away not once, but twice. Let’s remember that ’55’ left the Red Bull orbit in mid-2017 to join Renault in the middle of the season, when he swapped Toro Rosso for the French team, who were looking for him at all costs to build a team for the future.