Max Verstappen did not get used to seeing Liam Lawson during these three months of the year, and already in the third race he will have Yuki Tsunoda as his teammate in Red Bull. To draw a comparison, Yuki Tsunoda embarks on the second car from Milton Keynes like a miner who enters a coal mine and whose canary has vanished inside the cage due to lack of oxygen.
Verstappen does not blame Lawson entirely, but rather the poor performance of the Red Bull
Very soon, in his home grand prix at Suzuka, Tsunoda will take the place of Liam Lawson, who has barely been able to succumb to the demands of Red Bull for two races after taking over from Sergio Pérez in 2025. The truth is that no one manages to perform like Max Verstappen with the Red Bull. And along these lines goes the definitive explanation of what happens with the Red Bull and with all the drivers who measure themselves against the Dutchman with the same car.
A car that is nervous, aggressive, abrupt… that is only tamed in the hands of the four-time world champion. This is nothing new, far from it, for the management of the energy drinks team, as they know that the RB21 (like the RB20, the RB19, the RB18…) has been specifically designed for the demands and driving style of Verstappen and that Lawson has not been able to even come close to the minimum requirements.
In any case, and despite the fact that Max Verstappen is aware that Red Bull has been considering Yuki Tsunoda since the end of the Australian Grand Prix, the Dutchman is not too happy with the decision. What’s more, the Dutch press, such as ‘De Telegraaf’, reported this week that Max had asked to wait and give Lawson more time to adapt to the car.
Verstappen asked Red Bull to wait for Lawson for a couple of races
The decision was hasty after Lawson’s deplorable results in his two Grand Prix as a Red Bull driver. The New Zealander has not even been close to scoring any points, while the excellent performance of his teammate has only made more evident the abysmal difference in level between the two drivers.
So far, the former RB (Racing Bulls) has not managed to seize his opportunity, although it is no less true that the New Zealander has only had two races (and a day and a half of testing) to prove his level. Neither in Australia nor in China has he been able to demonstrate his ability, and for the Austrian team it was more than enough to make the change of cards official on Thursday morning.
The Red Bull is a rough and aggressive car, only suitable for the hands of Verstappen
However, Verstappen does not blame Lawson entirely and focuses on the car’s poor performance, especially considering that, even with his excellent performance, the world champion’s car is a step behind McLaren and also Mercedes.
That is why, as seen at the post-race press conference in Shanghai, the Red Bull driver called for more self-criticism from the team management. Let’s remember that in the last five years they have released or replaced drivers of the stature of Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly, Daniel Ricciardo, Sergio Pérez (who they put 200 fucking points ahead of at the end of the year) and now Lawson. None of his teammates have been up to scratch, although for Verstappen the problem is with the car and not with his driving.
For his part, in the announcement of Yuki Tsunoda as second driver for the remainder of the 2025 season, Christian Horner commented that it was “difficult to see Liam struggle with the RB21 in the first two races”, so the team has “collectively made the decision to make a change” quickly. “We have a duty to protect and develop Liam and, together, we see that after such a difficult start it makes sense to act quickly so that Liam can gain experience.” At the same time, he added that ‘we are aware that there is still a lot of work to be done with the current car and the experience of Yuki Tsunoda will be very beneficial’ in helping to develop the car.