Our Reaction to Liam Lawson JOINING Red Bull

[@chickenpit9991]

Lawson's promotion to Red Bull is either a curse that will end his career or the brightest move in his entire career.

[@johnbode5528]

Damn near ended Albon's. The car is pretty twitchy and optimized for Max's _Leeeroy Jenkins_ style of driving, and Max "only" won 9 races this year (as opposed to 19 with the RB19), so I believe Liam is going to struggle with it a bit. But, being relatively new and still in his learning phase, he may be able to adapt to the car better than Checo could. Frankly I don't believe it's the best career move for off-track reasons, but he could certainly have done worse.

[@blasphemer_amon]

Correction, it will either be the curse that ends Lawson's career or the second brightest move in Horner's career.

[@Questerer]

It can only go wrong for everyone.

[@juzoli]

That’s true for all newbies. It is a risk someone has to take, in order to find future champions.

[@Gl-my8fw]

And al on was still far superior to perez and should have kept the seat.​@@johnbode5528

[@jordanhooper1527]

I'm with Tommy: "oh"

[@Aubergineman18]

I'm sure that's everyone reaction to that

[@HerrStaale]

@Aubergineman18 Sure are you? I am telling you, wrong!

[@Aubergineman18]

@@HerrStaale No I meant to Liam getting that seat instead of Yuki

[@RAZGR1Z]

@Aubergineman18 No, only casuals.

[@Kgothatsolhosie]

What's funny is, I had just finished the reaction to Perez. Went on IG, the first post was the Liam announcement. It's CRAZY. Feel bad for Yuki.

[@calumbishop7082]

On a side note: Advanced congratulations to Isaac Hadjar, given he's a member of the Red Bull Junior Team and F2 runner up, he's probably going to get the call up to VCARB or Racing Bulls or whatever they're calling it now. That means next season we will have (including Bearman and Doohan), 5 Rookie Drivers. After years of only getting 1 or maybe 2 new drivers per season, we have witnessed a major 'changing of the guard' moment, new drivers who may be stars of tomorrow making their starts and old drivers who have been in the sport for years prior making their exit.

[@mertcanhacfazloglu4862]

Not only that but if Lawson is fired mid season, Hadjar will be in Red Bull for the second half of 2025 season.

[@twanheijkoop6753]

He already let it slip in an interview that he's in vcarb for the upcoming season

[@jasongarfitt1147]

I thought red bull were sniffing around Colapinto?

[@someoneunseen5168]

Hadjar way over rated. Blew the f2 championship.

[@OK-fi4yq]

Hadjar will only be a placeholder for Lindblad.

[@tfsmf]

It's a shame that Yuki's Honda ties probably affected this decision, I really wanted him to get in that Red bull. He's shown enough to prove he deserves a shot.

[@mari-us6rh]

Nope,it's more like the Japanese temper!

[@michaelwilkie35]

I agree, though honestly his Honda ties probably affected him in a positive way too, (he was not great in 2021 & 2022). 2025 will be an excellent chance to prove he’s worth following Honda to AM once Alonso does retire.

[@mari-us6rh]

It's more like his temper!!!!!

[@Sochbi]

@mari-us6rh Have you seen max?

[@chrisbright8976]

except liam is faster..

[@joyl7842]

Some weird decisions at Red Bull in recent years. From handing Perez a 2-year contract with no indication he was approaching Verstappen's level to taking ages to replace him, when in the past they replaced drivers mid-season when there was no indication of performance. What happened to that Red Bull?

[@sgript]

One word: Money

[@nulian]

This is no suprise yuki is a honda driver and honda is leaving red bull in 2026.

[@amintoodeep]

1+1 contract...How is it weird to give your driver stability and opportunities to improve. You forget Checo had actually finished second in the previous year and third before... He also began the season performing well till he fell off the cliff. The team rightly gave him the opportunity but it didn't work out. Plus Checo brings in huge money endorsement and sales in South America.

[@Alirion]

Neither Tsunoda nor Lawson or Ricciardo were nearly as fast as Perez in the simulator during last and this season, so they had no base to replace Perez. Now the optics for Perez were so bad because of a really bad RB20, that the felt to have to take action and replace Perez. BUT Lawson will be even worse than Perez compared to Verstappen nex year, if the RB21 is as bad as the RB20 the last 2/3 of this year!

[@empress_alex]

​@@nulian Still makes no sense to choose Lawson over him. Yuki is the far better choice, but I guess Red Bull must've really enjoyed losing the WCC this year because it's almost certainly going to happen again next year now lol.

[@toggtlas7099]

Tommy: Yuki shouldn't be defined by and forever locked to Honda. Tommy (the next sentence): Let's talk about why he should hope for Aston due to the Honda partnership. 😅

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

it doesn't matter if Yuki is tied to Honda, 2025 is still with Honda.

[@Rob2]

@@Grammarlings-cf8yw I can understand that Red Bull would not promote Yuki to the main team for just one year when they already know (or can guess) that he will walk to Aston Martin in 2026. Not only would they be facing the same decision (who to put next to Max) again, they would also potentially have a leak of information to the competition.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

@@Rob2 original take - but it's not true, Lawson for 1 year at VCARB - with a contract to switch between teams, it's not like anyone else has a seat available for 25. Once Yuki is out you move Lawson in 2026. You get to see what Yuki can do (while he's still on a low contract), if he's bad you boot him down and promote Liam meantime you get to check that Liam really is all that... you'd get to test that cos you will know if he's at the limit of the car or not. What's the downside? Imagine if you put Tsunoda in the RB, then you keep Liam at VCARB - put Hadjar in the car and what if Hadjar beats him? you still put Liam in the car? No you put Hadjar... it makes no sense to gamble like this on Lawson, from any sporting sense - there are no downsides that I can see, even cynically that's why I (and many others) worry the decision is so personal and maybe racist --

[@willemde2koxde635]

we should not forget mercedes is also putting a literal rookie in their top team car with antonelli, also mclaren did that with Piastri, its not that unique or weird to put a rookie in a top car

[@henkormel5610]

Was McLaren at that time a top team? Is Mercedes still a top team? Is the only criteria heritage?

[@kilojoel776]

@@henkormel5610 Is red bull still a top team?

[@donniethedealer2623]

@@henkormel5610Mercedes only finished one place behind RedBull this year

[@henkormel5610]

@kilojoel776 Barely but they delivered the WDC. The team still functions like a well oiled clock. McLaren at the time Piastri joined were at the back of the pack. Mercedes is for three seasons now at a 300-500 points deficit to the WCC. Is that topteam worthy?

[@jamesvoneschen6603]

antonelli is a potential generational talent, lawson is great but isn’t that. you can tell how much verstappen’s career progress has affected the way toto makes decisions.

[@nutellabrah6718]

i point back to that one time when Liam Lawson was defending against everyone really aggressively in the race and then when Max was behind he was the most gentlest person letting him by. I think that sold everyone.

[@Klont123]

Logical decision, nothing to it.

[@Castofrance]

Talking about Liam's experience like Kimi isnt going straight into the Merc for 2025

[@vili988]

Which it's more coherent than what done by Red Bull. In this case, there is a driver like Yuki, part of Red Bull universe for years, being better than Lawson and not getting the seat. Antonelli is not getting the seat instead of another mercedes junior driver, he was the only option going in that direction

[@python2198]

Which also wasn’t the greatest move😂

[@pnw_jordan]

All while Colapinto sits and Sainz languishes in a Williams. Nothing about F1 can be seen as merit-based 😂

[@JohnnyMaverik]

Merc doesn't have the luxury of a second team where they can sit their prospects and see how they perform, giving them f1 experience and in theory lessoning the shock of moving up the the big boy team if and when that happens. Merc are taking a huge risk with Kimi and it's entirely likely they will be kicking themselves for not just taking Sainz on a two season contact with optional extension when he was available.

[@JohnnyMaverik]

@@pnw_jordan Outside of Lance Stroll most of F1 is merit based. Junior drivers have existing contracts and are cheep optional for team initially. If Mercedes feel Antonelli shows the potential to perform in f1 and the alternatives like Sainz don't excite them, it makes sense to take a risk on Kimi if you are willing to risk your constructors performance against taking a driver who likely costs a tenth of those alternate options and would be much easier to replace. Considering the cost cap constructors performance is now much less on a concern than it once was as none of the F1 teams run at a loss regardless of where they finish.

[@ExodiaNecross2]

No one seems to understand yuki is never going too Redbull especially since he is a Honda driver not a red bull driver & Honda going too Aston martin in 2026.

[@RSaran97]

I thought he was a Formula 1 driver tbh

[@hbhomer]

@@RSaran97He is a honda driver and ford is going to make red bulls engines

[@ryno4859]

So then why did they test him in a Red Bull car?

[@j.b.o6829]

So many people are misinformed on this. He is backed by Honda but he is a Red Bull junior. He has said it, Christian Horner has said it, Helmut Marko has said it. Tsunoda has confirmed himself that Honda don’t care what team he races for, they simply gave him the financial backing to get into F1. Similar to how Mercedes have backed Antonelli or how Ferrari have backed Bearman, having a massive manufacturer behind you makes it easier. But he is a Red Bull junior driver backed by Honda, not a Honda driver.

[@Umar-gw6fy]

@@ryno4859as a favour to honda

[@madmanf1179]

Yuki will be in villain mode now Also funny how many Checo fans are having a mental breakdown

[@Willbrse]

Well if Yuki went villain mode it'd only prove Red Bull right.

[@AKStovall]

@@Willbrse not if somehow Yuki in the VCARB beats Lawson in the RBR a lot... villain mode doesn't mean crashing and acting a fool. not sure what kind of villains you watch.

[@Willbrse]

@@AKStovall That wouldn't be a villain mode, that would be just doing a better job. Doing a better job makes one a villain because someone else got the promotion...? Well... you are watching too much TV I guess. Your vision of villains got distorted. Typical Yuki villain mode includes throwing his car on his teammate on a cool down lap... that one ended his chances. At least Hadjar makes Yuki looks like an adult in comparison heh

[@AllahIzafag730]

​@@AKStovallthat wouldnt be that much of a supruse on account of how tricky the red bull is to drive

[@waynetowers5046]

It's odd, Vettel's last season in F1 with Aston Martin, he was in beast mode throughout the year, especially after he announced his retirement. Perez just went into Mexican Siesta mode.

[@DB-a-Boeing-Dr]

Those knocking the Lawson decision clearly dont know his background. First ever driver to win on debut in DTM ( was also is first ever race driving a tin top ), Super formula, Formula Europe, Toyota racing series, F4. All these he was racing current F1 drivers. Lawson on a filming day at Silverstone this year racing the current RB did a lap that would of had him on pole in Silverstone this year. Lawson has been the main RB sim driver for the last 3 years. Outside Max and Checo there is not a driver who has more experience driving the current actual car than Lawson. I do feel bad for Yuki but the moment RB announced they were moving to Ford he was never going to get a RB seat due to his Honda backing. I suspect 2026 will see Yuki go to Indy as Honda has been trying to get a full time drive for a Japanese driver for a number of years.

[@daveroberts1099]

At last .., an informed comment! 👍

[@biljancanin]

Well, Liam didn't do well in either F3 or F2, but F2 is a real hit and miss for every driver. As for him and his time at Silverstone... We have to look at the conditions of the track this year and when he drove, also, they can lower the weight, crank up the power, etc. Many things could have affected the lap time... But especially the weather and track conditions...

[@yanguskhan8513]

yuki going to indy is probably the fall back plan if an aston martin seat doesnt open up. im sure yuki and his agent will try everything in their power to keep him in F1.

[@chrisclee6693]

And you're ignoring Tsunoda's experience and development. All the things people slate him for, Lawson is guilty of - he's already riled up other drivers like Alonso.

[@sonypd9842]

Red bull are using their own powertrains derived from Honda with ford consulting on electrical integration. Why do people think they’re ford powertrains. Also my understanding was Lawson didn’t set very competitive lap times in Silverstone, that was Ricciardo

[@KushalPatelignite2304]

Dude people stop hating liammm.. let max do all the bullying 😂😂

[@Rajesh-mc2py]

Meeting you guys at a Live event was awesome 😎

[@mattp1tommy]

Great to meet you too!

[@GregS-vy6tu]

Lawson has had 11 F1 races (5 last year and 6 this year). How many times has he crashed the car? He’s a rookie, has had no prep or preseason, has not raced a lot of the tracks and yet he’s on the pace. No brainer.

[@117JamesRoss]

Exactly. The people saying "but Yuki beat him" are pretending Yuki doesn't have 8x the experience

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

@@117JamesRoss why does it matter who has more experience, what matters is getting the best driver for 2025 - if Lawson can't beat Tsunoda he doesn't yet deserve the seat

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

He’s honestly been very good. Like you said, a lack of mistakes (2nd last in terms of crash damage) He’s also already had some serious memorable moments in just 6 races, driving from last to the points in COTA, putting one over on Perez in Mexico, overtaking Hamilton/Alonso in the same corner at Brazil, qualifying 5th in the wet in Brazil His racecraft has been very impressive as well, holding his own against the big guns on tracks he’s never driven before

[@suede__]

@@Grammarlings-cf8yw My guess is that he is better at helping develop the car

[@Infiltator2]

@@Grammarlings-cf8yw Tsunoda needs to beat a rookie by a margin and not what he actually did. He is also mentally not there and now can be used as a baseline for upcoming talents

[@madjad22]

Everyone is bringing up Lawson's amount of races and going to a top team. They forget Antonelli is going to merc, and Doohan is going to Alpine.

[@tecnogadget2]

Doohan is a bum, and will be an anchor if they decide to really put him on the whole season

[@LilyKachi]

Antonelli has had a lot of practices with the W14 and older specs for over a year now. So he kinda understands the car as opposed to Liam.

[@Meeko2689]

Merc doesn’t have a word championship and they are not top team at the moment.

[@ButHearMeOut]

Those examples are not equivalent to each other, Alpine isn't anywhere close to being a top team And Antonelli is thought to be a generational talent, not just a driver who did well in Super Formula

[@mrza8910]

Mercedes previously have Williams as pseudo-sister team, but its no more, so they need to make a bet to not lose him. Alpine is French and a bum. Red Bull have precedences with rookies/inexperienced drivers in their 2nd seat all ending with failure ever since Max is there. The ones who managed to stay longer are experienced drivers like Dani Ric and Checo. This is basically Red Bull doing their best in recreating their 3rd academy driver promotion fail in a row.

[@michaeltelfer3483]

Getting Lawson on for Perez is a sidestep and not an upgrade based on Lawson short F1 careers so far. Red Bull never had any intention of putting Yuki in the car.

[@StevenQ74]

Several rerasons: Yuki is a Honda driver more than a Red Bull junior and next year is the last year with Honda and Yuki would try to beat Max and we all know that would end like with Gasly with a lot of crashes and frustration, because nobody will beat Max. And also remember that if Yuki did not have Honda backing he would not have lasted more than 2 seasons in F1, he would have been replaced in the second season for sure.

[@rthraitor]

I actually like the move- Lawson showed a lot of potential matching Yuki in his first half a season, whereas Tsunoda was demolished by Pierre for his first 2 years. If they are willing to give him time like they did for Perez, I think it will turn out fine. Everyone likes to talk about Pierre's stint at redbull as a reason for why this is a bad idea, but he literally fell out with his engineers so it wasn't just redbull being unfair, that relationship became untenable.

[@bimapriambada1098]

But this is Red Bull we're talking about, and they have to complete and win the races not just developing some abstract like potential. So hiring experience driver is their priority not just hiring young potential lads.

[@gilbej91]

I am not a Yuki fan but statistically, he has outperformed Liam. It saddens me that performance is not the main driving force.

[@117JamesRoss]

Yuki barely outperformed him with 8x more experience

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

It’s taken Liam basically no time at all to be within a tenth of Yuki’s quali pace, matching him in race pace, and making less mistakes than him He has the higher potential imo

[@trollerstrom]

In 2023 when Liam replaced Ricciardo due to a wrist injury, in 5 races Liam outperformed Yuki twice and in the other 3 races Yuki was DNF.

[@patrickhanlon2325]

Good luck to Lawson. He has one of the toughest seats in f1, a lot of pressure for a young man

[@SugarFreeLatte]

Id argue and say the single toughest seat in F1, being in the 2nd Red Bull alongside Max has completely broken drivers, Gasly and Albon are now highly respected and praised as drivers but they were criticized, demolished by Max, lost confidence and were replaced, opposite with Perez, it was a crime when Racing Point dropped him and everyone campaigned for him to be picked up as he was the best free agent going in to 2021, now he's regarded as one of the worst drivers on the grid (which i don't agree with), is miles off Max, crumbled under pressure and starting making rookie mistakes last year, and finished 8th nearly 300 points off Max this year in the standings, no one can seem to handle the 2nd Red Bull seat

[@Crazycatman]

Kinda true the Seat has Allot of pressure yes but the fanbase of F1 makes it so much worse with constantly trashing and hating on him already. Saying he’s a bad driver only because he got the Red Bull Seat which every smart person knows he doesn’t choose himself Red Bull chooses so all the angry people should stop hating on Lawson. If you wanna spread hate anyway which is kinda low just take it out on Red Bull They make the desicions that’s my opinion.

[@tsunrai]

I just don’t see how this won’t end the same as Gasly and Albon. I feel bad for Lawson because it could really make an impact on his career if he can’t perform at least as well(?) as Perez despite the massive experience difference.

[@The123Orion123]

As they said, doesn’t matter if it’s an experienced driver or not. It’s a big ask of anyone. At least Lawson is keen and knows what he’s in for. He has seen what happened to Gasly/Albon.

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

Perez set the bar as low as possible, literally just make Q3 and Lawson will be a major improvement lol

[@connorappleton1945]

"Why does Red Bull use the measuring stick with Yuki" Stop, he's already dead

[@matthewthompson3300]

Im happy Lawson has gotten a full time seat next year as i do think he's good enough to be in F1, however i think putting straight into the Red bull could either go very well or could damage his career, it will be interesting how does next to Max next year. As for Yuki i do feal for him as he's done everything he can to deserve that seat and i think know he has to try look elsewhere outside of Red Bull for his long term F1 future.

[@nycsox987]

Red Bull not picking a guy who has been in f1 for 4 years says all you need to know. If Red Bull believed in Yuki at all, they wouldve put him in after the summer break. People talking shit about how Lawson doesn't deserve is wild

[@spawn669]

Ok sad for Yuki, but Yuki does still make alot of mistakes in his driving. Liam Lawson is showing alot of ruthlessness that other drives don't show. Lando not as ruthless as he needs to be, leClerc not as ruthless as he needs to be

[@foxyfoxington2651]

Lawson is gonna be in the wall every race and get dropped by the summer break.

[@gastongarraza7391]

@@spawn669 both did a similar job in the races they shared. I think RB sees more potential in Liam since he is a rookie, while Honda abandoning RB in 2026 also played against Yuki. I like Liam, but I think this promotion is way too soon for him

[@campbellshepherd7882]

Doubt it ​@@foxyfoxington2651

[@nycsox987]

@@foxyfoxington2651 why the need to be so negative???

[@EudesConhecido]

What makes people mad about Tsunoda not having the seat is that a lot of fans work heavily, accomplishing all the goals posted for them to have that objective fullfilled and suddenly a new guy, not as competent, is having all the glory. It's a terrivle way to pay loyalty.

[@seiseii_v]

Next up: Colapinto to vcarb

[@JordanHarris]

He crashes too much bro

[@712op]

Hadjar is getting that seat

[@StuartPenman-z4w]

He is a williams junior so highly doubt it

[@HerrStaale]

Not gonna happen. Lindblad is my guess

[@TheSt1092]

@@HerrStaale Hadjar.

[@tratt_katt6930]

How dare youtube hide this from me for 14 seconds??

[@davelangford2439]

Cringe

[@shmet]

They can easily switch Tsunoda in for Lawson if results are not going their way. They cannot demote Yuki back as that would make him leave

[@kelvinchocolate7045]

I bet they would switch Hadjer for Lawson in that case.

[@IanKim-s2i]

@@kelvinchocolate7045that’s a 100 percent what’s gonna happen. Even if both Hadjar and Lawson are unable to drive Helmut Marko would jump in that cockpit instead of offering it to Yuki

[@Gl-my8fw]

Yuki couldnt just "leave" if he wants to get paid and remain in the sport.

[@066kshitizvsingh4]

​@@IanKim-s2i Horner is the one who doesn't rate Yuki at all. Not Marko

[@einezcrespo2107]

Yuki isn't part of the Red Bull academy. He's a Honda driver. When they leave Red Bull he goes with them.

[@benglishman]

Sainz should have got that seat 100%

[@joyl7842]

Sainz would threaten Verstappen. Never going to happen.

[@best___0999]

@@joyl7842 i doubt it carlos wasnt even a threat to charles let alone max, people overyhype carlos dont forgte 2015 max at 17 beatn carlos who was 21 by 49 vs 19 points

[@amintoodeep]

​@best___0999 facts.... Also People forget that Carlos would command a whole lot of money, and redbull is not looking for another no1 driver.... They have a clear leader and are looking for a no2.

[@bongman123]

@@joyl7842 Sainz wasn't up to par when he was Max's partner before, there's no way he'd be able to challenge Max considering he is in prime form right now.

[@PeterPost-w8m]

@@joyl7842How little do you DTS fans know… Hilarious and tragic comment at the same time. Stick to football mate

[@urbanexploring]

That intro was exactly how we all feel...

[@JordanHarris]

I'm excited. The faster driver in the post season test is getting the drive. Y'all are silly.

[@philipdavidson645]

I’m so happy for Liam! I hope he does amazing.

[@Nightwing184]

definitely happy for Liam. Have liked him since he was Albon's teammate. But i think most people are gutted for Yuki

[@christianlabetoria7167]

@@Nightwing184I like Liam a lot cause of his performance in zandvoort but it’s sad for Yuki

[@marksibley4546]

Liam has driven the car more as the reserve driver and sim driver. Also as RedBull reserve he also has a relationship with the team. He has a really good social media presence as well . He also believes in himself and has been all in for RedBull

[@lillyess385]

He's disliked. RB PR has their work cut out for them.

[@RowdyBurns78]

@@lillyess385 Give him a chance, What did liam do to you?

[@dalyxia]

Lawson probably showed potential that he can drive a car that has a setup for Max. Commentators keep saying Max likes to drive a very "pointy" front focussed car and RB clearly needs someone that can drive such a car.

[@SDThondas]

Big talking points for Lawson choice: 1. He isnt as much a threat to Max as Yuki (both really arent tbh) 2. He is the bigger piggy bank out of the two. 3. No long term contract. 2025 will be it for him if he pulls a Perez.

[@TheCrumb74]

Honda slapped RB by pulling out again forcing RB to start building their own engines, then Honda changed their mind (again) and are back with AM. Horner holds a grudge, so Yuki was never getting the drive.

[@JordanHarris]

Honda been messing around 🤷‍♂️

[@AKStovall]

RBPT was making engines with a Honda nameplate since Honda came on as an engine "supplier". Honda has never made an engine for Red Bull.

[@chiefponcho]

@@AKStovallare u on crack?

[@_-TC]

@@AKStovall No? Oh, I must've dreamed about 2019 tot 2021 then. Surely that must have been a Mitsubishi engine or something.

[@prospekt_1]

@@_-TCLol, yeah, guess we’ve had a shared dream of those three Honda years

[@raysat7256]

Maybe if honda stayed. It would be yuki

[@HerrStaale]

Then his seat would be secure!

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

@@HerrStaale What are you talking about? this is about 2025 - it's still a Honda year.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

What are you talking about? this is about 2025 - it's still a Honda year.

[@Alex-md6bu]

Red bull either promote very quickly or just straight up string someone along forever…..

[@martinprince8253]

Merry Christmas and happy hollandaise everybody!

[@eagcgreen9814]

To me, I don't think Lawson has done enough. It feels like a gamble that has a higher chance of blowing up in their face than paying off.

[@ModernVintage31]

From a stats perspective I can understand how RBR can see a higher ceiling for Lawson. For me personally though Lawson gives off bad vibes. Potentially dangerous a**h0le vibes. No, I can’t make a logical argument that would justify me saying that about him versus Tsunoda. It’s just vibes and I wonder how many other fans here are picking up the same thing.

[@eagcgreen9814]

@@ModernVintage31 he does have a very punchable face lol. I see what you mean

[@burritoomg]

What's wilder than Lawson getting the seat is that Horner still has his. The sexual misconduct allegations, losing Newey, signing Checo to that 2 year deal earlier this season, putting his money on Danny Ric and watching Yuki still outperform him, coming in third in the constructors despite having the WDC in the car--what more does this clown have to do in order to get fired?

[@ModernVintage31]

Good points. Good question.

[@TheSlowoldman]

Just think, Yuki can go to Aston in 26 as the reserve driver behind Alonso and Lancey Pants.

[@Kessoku]

Liam becoming the most controversial figure in formula 1 🤔

[@LukasLindgren11]

I dont get why people are surprised that they chose Liam

[@AKStovall]

not really surprised per say... more like disappointed in yet another potentially bad decision from RBR.

[@mrza8910]

Not surprised. Disappointed? Angry? Ashamed? A huge understatement. If they gonna chose Liam anyway, why are they extending Yuki's contract using academy clauses when he's in talking stages with Alpine and Haas? If Honda's the problem then why not just let him go? When asked about it, Horner deflect it by talking about others (Checo, Liam). Yeah I'm done with that team. Hoping it burns to the ground.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

@@mrza8910 RB is a toxic mess. Yuki doesn't deserve to be treated like this - and the post-hoc "justification" by people is sad to see.

[@JeeBeeOfficial]

Crazy how we went from a season with no rookies to a season full of rookies. Very interesting how they will stack to their teammates!

[@cassiechabot7854]

people arguing yuki is too angry for the red bull seat makes me laugh bc lawson was hellbent on making enemies in every single race. he's going to fight max and not settle for being second driver and it's going to bring so much delicious tension to red bull next year

[@1EnZBosS1]

2026 he is gonna be gonzo anyway. Honda is dipping for Aston so he will most likely be dropped for someone else is my guess as he maybe makes it to Aston or goes on "forced retirement"

[@donniethedealer2623]

Nothing to do with Yukis personality or ability, it’s Honda

[@superstar_h_gamer5211]

It's not about anger. It's more about confidence Red Bull believe that Yuki is more likely to go in a hole when that happens

[@tomk5066]

I can see Lawson trying too hard to be a tough guy next season and getting involved in crash after crash and being a bit of a disaster

[@JordanHarris]

As a RedBull fan we want two ast drivers. Lawson knows how to not crash. Sergio not so much.

[@usedtoexistonce]

"o h." ~ all of us

[@brianolsen396]

Pretending Yuki had a real shot when he’s on a 1 year deal is a complete joke… they’re not going to promote him and then be instantly in a contract dispute

[@ross-carlson]

How do you not understand that if he moved to RB they would give him a new contract? How can you have such an ignorant take on this? Wow. Guess there are a lot of non-fan here that don't at all understand the sport - that's for that reminder. Oof.

[@twanheijkoop6753]

​@@ross-carlsonno new contract needed most likely, they are signed to the RB group and can be moved between the seats freely. But I agree that's not the reason he's not going to be in that seat.

[@brianolsen396]

@@ross-carlsonit’s not that he needs a new contract to go to RB it because they have a VERY short window to decide to resign him, because he’ll use his position at RB to negotiate for a deal elsewhere

[@capt_Iceman]

If you think that Lawson will perform better than Perez... You are delusional.

[@Olifantenstaart]

I see a lot of unwarranted hate online for Liam from people who favour Yuki. Sad.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

It's not hate for Lawson to say in a meritocracy Yuki should have gotten the drive for 2025 -

[@Olifantenstaart]

@ that’s not hate and not even close to the actual hate I’m referring to.

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

Yuki fans need to understand he had his chance (2021-22) and blew it After that, you’re a known quantity for Red Bull and they look for the next young talent

[@stayoffthemarbles6790]

Honda tanked Yuki's RB career

[@keirangeorge9046]

I think it comes down to the fact that Liam isn't far off Yuki after just 11 races, Yuki has had 4 years. Plus he has the mental attitude to potentially survive the pressure of the main team. Don't think Yuki has that.

[@ClinicalDecisionYikesYT]

Where is this armchair psychology coming from? You know absolutely nothing about “mental attitude”

[@117JamesRoss]

@@ClinicalDecisionYikesYT I guess you missed the part when Yuki lost his shit over team orders then proceeded to act like he was going to crash into Ricciardo on the cooldown lap. You don't need a degree in psychology to see that Yuki could never accept the role of Max's sidekick.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

Lawson has shown exactly the same attitude, and Lawson can't beat Tsunoda, so why would you chose him? politics, maybe race, or something personal.

[@Anvil35]

the “mental” arguments people make favouring Liam over Yuki sounds about white

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

Lawson’s mentality is underrated by fans. Red Bull basically told him “hey mate, we binned Ricciardo for you, you’ve got 6 races to earn a contract. Oh, and your first race? You’re starting last” That’s as tough a start as you’ll get

[@maaduece5132]

If the car is half way decent in Australia, i think he should be able to be 5 - 10 th every race with the occasional top 5 and not more than 150 point behind max by end of season

[@OreoForRuario]

If Lawson performs well, a lot of people will be eating their words, or more likely pretending they agreed with the decision all along.

[@samoht-k2g]

But he's not going to

[@ButHearMeOut]

If Lawson performs well, we still won't know that Yuki wouldn't be even better

[@Meeko2689]

He hasn’t had a full season, you can’t really say that Lawsons performs well.

[@kylem324]

I think most people hope he’ll do well. I think many of the people that are expressing exasperation at RedBulls driver selection are doing so because it seems as though RedBull has learned nothing from their previous mistakes of managing their Junior development program, and supporting their young drivers. Max didn’t come up in the program, and Ricciardo is the last driver that has thrived under the program. (Unless my memory has failed me). They chew their drivers up. Only for them to become stars at other teams. And then RedBull finds themself again in the circumstance of struggling to find drivers for their four seats while simultaneously having one of the fastest cars on the grid. Which is insane and no other team has found themselves with a championship winning car, but no driver to race it. They had to hire Perez because they burned through all their talent. And he he provided middling results that were hidden by how much faster the car was then other teams that all hadn’t nailed their concepts. Which brings us up to the present. Other teams have managed to build cars that can compete. Going into next year the RedBull is unlikely to be the fastest. I’m guessing 3rd or 4th, and they’ll have serious headwinds for their own powertrain in 2026. These are the conditions where they fail to nurture talent and instead just chew threw several drivers. I feel sorry for Liam because RedBulls own history mean the odds are against him having enough time and support to succeed. His promotion could be a poisoned chalice.

[@Fifty8day]

Thank you Matt and Tommy for being respectful towards Liam unlike the haters . Thanks for great podcast. See you in Melbourne!

[@Aleeownz]

Lawson has been too close to Tsunoda with far less experience, makes sense to me

[@danielread8549]

Yuki doubled the points of Lawson in the same amount of races..

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

Except the decision should be about who's ready to race for RB in 2025 - not the future - they should have given Lawson a year in VCARB for experience,

[@MIMIZU529]

Lawson giving the finger to Perez. Horner signing Perez for two years and then firing him. Red Bull losing Newey. Horner accused of sexual harassment. I'm looking forward to seeing the decline of Red Bull Racing.

[@sh-spectrum409]

The problem with Yuki is his ties with Honda, he’d only have one season with the Red Bull squad and then he has to leave with Honda in ‘26 to go to Aston Martin. So I suspect both Helmut and Christian agreed there was no point.

[@jmacd8817]

He's backed to get him a seat. Horner and Marko have both said, publicly, that Yuki is a Red Bull driver, NOT a Honda driver.

[@insertgenericusernamehere2402]

Sick of people slating Lawson for it. So ridiculous and media like this Isn't helping

[@landofantho]

It was the stupidest decision: How can they not learn from Gasly, Albon, De Vries, they try and fail, and it will probably not be smooth for Liam either. Tsunoda has the experience needed to perform better in the early days, let Liam race a bit before throwing him into a top car! Red bull never ceases to amaze with their young driver decisions.

[@David1991.]

Yuki made a racist slur towards Zhou and cost him his seat in Red Bull Racing

[@JordanHarris]

​@@David1991.Did he though? It just seems like he's a Honda driver and not as good as Lawson, who was faster in winter testing in a worse car. RB vs Red Bull test car for Yuki.

[@JordanHarris]

​@@David1991.I see that he called him the r word but I'm not seeing the "racist" slur.

[@amintoodeep]

You do know better than a team that had won multiple championships right?... Why don't they give you the job seeing as you know better?

[@David1991.]

​@@JordanHarris Yuki can't handle Max winning car during testing and the pressure been a Red Bull Racing team

[@gfunkyotrunk]

Love your work guys!! Awesome show.

[@amintoodeep]

Yuki had 4 years and if redbull were convinced about him, he'd have had the seat, I take it from the boss's mouth. They just felt Lawson has more range and potential or ceiling given his progress in a short time. Plus don't forget Yuki is a Honda guy. Giving him the seat would have been like taking care of your soon to be ex's child.... But not to worry he will be a standby guy in case Liam struggles.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

You're saying that like people don't make bad or irrational decisions. I wouldn't be surprised if his race was an issue.

[@Cloxxki]

Stroll delivered more outstanding drives in his first 4 seasons than Tsunoda.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

@@Cloxxki always in better machinery and performed worse than the car - Tsunoda is a bit the opposite. He has outperformed his teammates since Gasly -

[@jessm96297]

I don’t know why people think Liam is going to be booted out early…literally who do they have to replace him? Another rookie with even less experience?

[@Cousin_n1cky]

This will NEVER make sense to me. Don’t understand in the slightest how Yuki isn’t getting the call up over Lawson. It’s sad, but I really think we are looking at another Gasly/Albon situation

[@einezcrespo2107]

It's called Honda. Yuki was part of the deal with Red Bull.

[@CodyOsteen5]

Over Yuki, I can understand. Over other options they could have had earlier in the year, I don’t understand either.

[@ronintje7647]

Yuki blew his chance early 2024 when he refused to let Ricciardo pass him when told to and then had his raging episode after the race ended. It is funny how anybody thought the guy had even a remote chance of ever getting that seat, RB would never give it to him as they can't risk him having temper tantrum.

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

more like, he won't be a doormat... it's true he isn't a #2 driver, more of a #1 driver. But RB should have just been honest about that - and stop pretending they ever were considering him.

[@rracker]

Its all about not competing with Verstappen and Lawson will be a great fit for that.

[@Portocala69]

Can we stop with the "Yuki beat Riccardo"? He beat a washed up driver...

[@rooroo526]

Read the first part of your sentence and then the other half.

[@117JamesRoss]

@@rooroo526 You're saying Ricciardo was at his peak when Yuki beat him?

[@Grammarlings-cf8yw]

but he did.... and he beat Lawson too

[@davidtjiang4329]

@@Grammarlings-cf8yw yuki has 4 years of experience in that car and liam 11 races total ?

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

And even then, Ricciardo beat him in 7 of the last 10 races as teammates. People forget that part…

[@YesBruv66]

You all realise lawson has been in that rb team in the background way longer than yuki and that yuki cake out of nowhere to take that tauri seat while lawson kept waiting and waiting

[@sujjo]

What people don't understand is, Liam is neck and neck with Yuki right now! Without the experience and a full season with winter testing to bed in. His graph can only go up from here in a steeper curve. If it doesn't work out, guess what they'll do? They'll put Yuki in then.

[@teks-kj1nj]

yeh this. Yuki is already at his max ceilng, Liam is nipping his heels with way less experience. His potential ceiling is higher.

[@JordanHarris]

Liam was faster* in the winter test. And Liam was only in the RB not the RedBull like Yuki was.

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

Correct, and Red Bull were very impressed with his race pace compared to his teammate

[@justinm.1]

@2:45 I prefer if they did have another driver in the team to beat Max...so Liam better be that driver, otherwise it should always have been Tsunoda forever and ever

[@mattquiney8]

Yuki lost any chance he might have had when he divebombed Danny Ric post race. I doubt he will still be at RB/VCARB past the end of the season

[@mrza8910]

Yeah I ain't staying at a team after 2025 that blocked me from getting out by activating academy driver clauses.

[@xenoborg007]

Hes not even the first RB driver to divebomb his teammate post race kzbin.info/www/bejne/oIbCeGecetWUebM

[@maaduece5132]

I think it was when he binned it in macau he fell out of favour with marko and he is kept around because of honda

[@coraelin]

Its the dead of the morning in my timezone. I am standing outside with my dog in the dark cold. I am not ready for your energy right now but I have to watch this.

[@LPChipi]

Why? Somebody on Twitter summarized it perfectly. "I don't know that Liam is _the_ guy. I just know Yuki _isn't_ "

[@Duval-In-The-Wall]

Absolutely spot on

[@chancecarter5503]

Liam kinda showed a level of hot headedness Yuki had a couple seasons ago. IMO Yuki has earned it

[@alvori1]

Yuki is a Honda driver and probably go to AM Honda in 26. Lawson is a RB junior driver and still young enough to be a much better driver then he is now

[@badboymorales]

Max better watch his back because i feel Liam will crash into Max any opportunity he has just to get any news coverage. Like he said hes not in redbull to make friends

[@Oni1975]

Once it was clear Checo was on the way out, Liam's ascension was not going to be a surprise. Still, despite all the politics and excuses, they did Yuki dirty. That man needs a drive somewhere he won't just be a measuring stick.

[@hannaa7872]

I think Red Bull were expecting a completely different reaction to the news. I've seen more negative comments than positive.

[@spaceshipdino]

Maybe its because Yuki is tempermental and RB thinks he will be hard to work with

[@joyl7842]

I read it's a language barrier problem. Yuki is bad at giving feedback to the engineers.

[@patilla_r]

Thank you, Tommy for saying that.

[@Wholemxlk]

I am devastated 😭

[@David1991.]

Yuki bottle it

[@JordanHarris]

Yuki rages

[@117JamesRoss]

Lol

[@ginnungagap69]

So excited for Liam! This was the right choice for Red bull. Yuki is a great driver and is absolutely deserving of the seat but being a Honda driver, I believe it would have been really short term considering the power unit team switch incoming.

[@MegaDarkness5000]

I'm just going to make comment here to comeback here once we get results in 2025

[@LivingWithSpinaBifida]

I think that Yuki's swearing and anger holds him back. He's too immature to have the redbull seat and all the attention it brings.

[@donniethedealer2623]

@@LivingWithSpinaBifida I mean lawson flipped off checo and got into an argument with Alonso in the space of a couple weeks. Maxs swears and shouts too, I doubt they care about his temper

[@jmacd8817]

As opposed to the calm, cool, collected Verstappen that punched another driver after the race? I get that VER is untouchable, but arguing that Yuki is too volatile is a fucking joke.

[@acevn-trulo5917]

​@jmacd8817 Nah fr cause making it seem like max is all peace is crazy yuki and max are alike cuase they don't gaf so you cannot argue temperament in favor of lawson

[@will2xtimes776]

I am by NO means a yuki fan but he by far 1000% DESERVED the rb seat

[@Dreminator]

Yuki had 4 years to impress the too guys, and liam came in and almost matches him. Liam seems to have a higher ceiling, so if you look at it that way, hes the right choice.

[@TheForce_Productions]

It was obvious, Tsunoda never been in Marko's target and he's still in Racing Bulls only because of Honda who leaves the team by the end 2025; Lawson instead, come from the team's own drivers program.

[@jerryvr]

Using Yuki as a measuring stick means that everyone's taller...

[@ryanabbeyseon]

Congrats on Mclaren winning the 2025 constructors championship

[@reno_2200]

You can replace Perez at Red Bull with almost anyone. Who would step up to fill in Tsunoda's role at VCARB? I think it's partly his reliability for the junior team that's held him back.

[@ayayoutuber]

he is going to 'crash and burn' with so little experience. Yuki just wasting time in the secondary team. I want to see yuki beat him with a VISA faster than Liam in a RedBull. That would be fun to watch.

[@christophercarney1809]

I don't understand why people are not taking yuki's personality into account as to why he has not been brought up. I understand the honda ties but I really think his character and therefore brand representation/marketability that make up the rest of the factors.

[@samsea0489]

Maybe because he’s actually improved on his flaws and you lot are still living in 2021

[@RogerSmetaniuk]

@@samsea0489 You obviously have missed all his meltdowns on the team radio over the last number of seasons including this one. And his dive bomb after the race on Riccardo in Bahrain showed why everyone sees him as a child with a temper and anger control of a 3year old. Hence why he will never have a seat at a top team.

[@climberkitty6683]

@@RogerSmetaniukit was in Bahrain though... like Lawson has also had fiery moments yuki hasn't had a moment since

[@christophercarney1809]

@@RogerSmetaniuk 🙏 👏

[@brycerobinson561]

@@climberkitty6683 what moment has lawson had? cause in COTA lawson undercut yuki and yuki was cursing towards his engineers, that was COTA so it wasnt a one time thing

[@RowdyBurns78]

I’m glad you guys spoke about this constructively. The Instagram comments are ruthless. I feel like people are overlooking the fact that Yuki is a Honda backed driver. And RB is going to ford in 2026, why put Yuki in the seat if he could only be there for a year? It doesn’t make business sense. Additionally Lawson has been in the redbull test program for years, and redbull has more information than any of us know about, as much as I like Yuki, Redbull has there reasons.

[@kelvinchocolate7045]

1) If Vips hadn’t said the wrong word, Lawson wouldn’t even be considered as a Red Bull reserve driver in 2022. 2) Lawson couldn’t even win the Super Formula……

[@AllahIzafag730]

And? Hes better that Tsunoda thats all that matters

[@kelvinchocolate7045]

@ How? By being outqualified by Tsunoda 0-6 this season?

[@juanncarrizo9508]

You're talking like the Súper formula is an easy category to win...

[@kelvinchocolate7045]

@@juanncarrizo9508 No it wasn’t , although Lawson was racing with Mugen which won the 2022 Constructor‘s and Driver‘s champions.

[@AllahIzafag730]

@@kelvinchocolate7045 Tsundoda has done 76 more grand prix than Lawson and yet he barely out qualifys him and had been behind in numerous races.

[@Reaper_ginger]

On merit Yuki probably deserves it more, but with Lawson being such a young driver they can put him in there and he can probably be molded into a driver that suits a Red Bull since he’s lacking a lot of that experience and predisposition to the type of car he can and can’t drive. Idk if explained that well in writing but it made sense in my head

[@Fiasco3]

Well they wanted a 'No challenge' Max driver, they've certainly got that. He hasn't even proved he can drive in the midfield consistently.

[@brycerobinson561]

you mustve rewatched 2023 but even then lawson has been there. multiple times in the last races of the 2024 Lawson got messed up on track or screwed my strategy, yuki unfortunately still has an unregulated temper, he still snaps at his engineer and is still a liability in the car. and i love yuki

[@jessm96297]

Tbf how could he?

[@Braselton21]

With the way RB has treated their drivers (not named Max) I don't see any Championship quality drivers actually wanting to go there until Marko - Horner & Verstappen leave.

[@Trica5tin]

Verstappen was asked who he wants as a teammate and he answered "Lawson". It is as simple as that.

[@Crazycatman]

Where? when? were you there?

[@cabbage724]

I'm honestly surprised how Yuki can still be motivated. He was the lowest-paid driver along with Hulkenberg and is top of the list of points per salary. He was sensational up until Monaco, until Perez got his two-year contract and he got his 1 year junior contract back again. It is no coincidence that at this point he lost interest and motivation. The fact is: He beat Lawson 10-1 in qualifying. He got a better position and more points in the race. Lawson, on the other hand, drove in Colapinto, Perez, Bottas and "Alonso" in the 6 races.

[@donniethedealer2623]

Yuki is leaving with Honda next year, why promote someone just for a year when they are barely out performing their team mate with several years less experience. It’s hardly surprising

[@1EnZBosS1]

Exactly

[@AKStovall]

barely outperforming? it's been clear cut. and teams do a 1 year thing all the time. not sure why everyone is dead set that a driver has to be on a multi-year deal. Liam is not ready for the big team. if they start comparing him to Max, his career is literally over, unless he's right there with Max every single time. if he's in the Checo realm in that car, he's liable to be out of F1 completely before the summer break.

[@donniethedealer2623]

@@AKStovall since Lawson joined they both only managed to finish in the points twice. So yes barely, it’s not about the length of the contract, it’s the fact Honda is packing up and moving to Aston Martin and yukis time at Redbull will be over

[@DOSdaze]

I knew it was going to be Lawson, but its still upsetting the way Yuki is being treated. What better way to celebrate the end of their Honda partnership than to put a Japanese driver in the seat, which just happens to be the most qualified and deserving. Plus Lawson needs more seat time in the sister team before he's ready for the pressure of RB next to Verstappen.