Liam Lawson Red Bull demotion

The story so far

Liam Lawson made his debut for Red Bull Racing at the Melbourne Grand Prix, qualifying 18th after his session ended early when he locked up his front tyres.^{15 Mar 2025} Dutch media then reported that he would be sacked after a difficult start to his first full Formula 1 season, with Yuki Tsunoda set to replace him.^{26 Mar 2025} Tsunoda will replace Lawson at Red Bull from the Japanese Grand Prix, and Lawson has been demoted to sister team Racing Bulls for the rest of the season.^{27 Mar 2025} Max Verstappen reportedly liked a social media post criticising the decision to drop Lawson.^{27 Mar 2025} Former driver Ralf Schumacher said Lawson should not have been given a seat in the sport and will likely never become a top-tier driver.^{1 Apr 2025}

Latest

Schumacher has criticised Lawson's demotion, arguing he should not have had a seat in F1 at all.^{1 Apr 2025}

What's next

Tsunoda is due to take Lawson's place at Red Bull from the Japanese Grand Prix.^{27 Mar 2025}

Key moments

1. 15 Mar 2025Lawson qualifies 18th on Red Bull debut at Melbourne after early session end.
2. 26 Mar 2025Dutch media report Lawson will be sacked, with Tsunoda reportedly replacing him.
3. 27 Mar 2025Tsunoda to replace Lawson from Japan; Lawson demoted to Racing Bulls.
4. 27 Mar 2025Verstappen reportedly likes social media post criticising Lawson's demotion.
5. 1 Apr 2025Ralf Schumacher says Lawson should not have had a seat and won't be top-tier.

Written from the stories below; each sentence links to its sources.