In a surprising mid-season move, Red Bull’s Formula 1 team has replaced Daniel Ricciardo with New Zealand’s rising star Liam Lawson for the remaining six races of the 2024 season. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has shed light on the decision, revealing the rationale behind Ricciardo’s dismissal and why it didn’t happen earlier, despite pressure from senior Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko.
In an appearance on F1’s F1 Nation podcast, Horner addressed the sudden in-season swap, explaining that while it would have been ideal for Ricciardo to finish the season, the team needed clarity about its future driver lineup. “In a perfect world, that [letting Ricciardo finish the season] would have been what we would have done,” said Horner. “But from a broader perspective, we need answers for the bigger picture in terms of drivers.”
Horner explained that the decision to place Lawson alongside Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull’s sister team for the final six races was designed to evaluate Lawson’s performance and assess whether he could be a long-term option for 2025. Despite Sergio Perez being contracted for the following season, Red Bull is keeping its options open, considering Lawson and other juniors like Isack Hadjar and Arvid Lindblad.
Ricciardo was brought back to Red Bull’s junior team with hopes of being a reliable backup for Perez, especially when the Mexican driver’s form dipped. However, Ricciardo’s lack of consistent performance made it hard for Red Bull to justify his continued presence, particularly after Marko pushed for his exit as early as June.
“I think it was the lack of consistency,” Horner said, detailing Ricciardo’s struggles. “He started the season roughly… Miami was a weekend of two halves… but the Saturday afternoon and Sunday were disastrous.”
Horner also highlighted that Ricciardo’s post-McLaren stint was marred by “bad habits” he had picked up during his time with the British team. Although Ricciardo performed well in Red Bull’s simulator and earned his seat back after a strong test at Silverstone, he couldn’t consistently replicate that level of performance on the track.
Despite this, Horner rejected accusations of Red Bull being overly harsh on Ricciardo. In fact, he revealed that he had been instrumental in giving the Australian more time to prove himself, countering Marko’s wishes. “I’ve done my very best to buy him as much time in the car to allow him to deliver, otherwise he’d have been out of the car after Barcelona,” said Horner.
Looking forward, Lawson’s performance will now be under intense scrutiny, as the young Kiwi faces the challenge of proving his worth in a grid stacked with talent. Tsunoda, who has evolved into a benchmark within the Red Bull system, will serve as Lawson’s primary comparison point for the rest of the season. “We know that Yuki is a very fast driver… Taking him as the data point, we saw with Daniel where he compared to Yuki. It will be very interesting to see how Liam performs over the last six remaining races,” said Horner.
The move to promote Lawson also highlights Red Bull’s renewed interest in promoting young talent, following the standout performances of rookies like Ollie Bearman and Franco Colapinto in F1’s junior categories. Horner acknowledged the importance of giving younger drivers a chance, suggesting that Red Bull may accelerate its plans to bring more juniors into the fold.
For now, Lawson has several weeks to prepare for his return to the Formula 1 grid at the United States Grand Prix. He will face an additional challenge as his Red Bull car is set to incur a grid penalty for exceeding the maximum number of engine components allowed.
In the end, Horner reiterated that while Red Bull hopes Perez rediscovers his early-season form, nothing is set in stone. “Obviously Checo finds his form and rediscovers the shape he was in at the beginning of the year and nothing changes,” he said, before cautioning, “But as we know in this business, two weeks is a long time.”
As for Ricciardo’s future, Horner left the door open for the possibility of his return if both Lawson and Perez falter, though he hinted that the Australian may be approaching the end of his F1 career. “I hope he stays around the sport… if Liam doesn’t get the job done, if Checo doesn’t get the job done, we know what Daniel’s capability is,” Horner said.
For now, all eyes are on Liam Lawson as he steps back into the spotlight, hoping to secure his place on the 2025 grid and follow in the footsteps of the Red Bull juniors before him.
