Horner already at the forefront to defend Lawson: "On circuits he knows, he will be in the game"

The story seems to have no end in Red Bull. For the first Grand Prix of the season, in Australia, the inevitable scenario is repeated with on one side, a Max Verstappen (3rd) who is outperforming despite equipment with limited potential, and on the other, a teammate who is lagging behind and, above all, struggling. After Sergio Pérez, it is Liam Lawson's turn to discover the joys (that's sarcasm) of the second Red Bull seat in 2025, and we can't say that his new adventure has started off on the right foot. This Saturday, the New Zealander had a dark day: affected by an engine problem during FP3, he was then eliminated from Q1 in qualifying, having only set the 18th time (out of 19 drivers, since Oliver Bearman did not participate).

Horner highlights Lawson's inexperience in Melbourne

At fault on his last two attempts, including a trip onto the grass on the penultimate corner during his final flying lap, Liam Lawson over-drove, trying to compensate for his lack of pace and experience. Having a difficult time with the Red Bull RB21, the pseudo-rookie with 11 Grand Prix starts was never in the game at this Australian meeting, a difficult start that already puts him under pressure for the rest of the weekend and the season. However, Red Bull is not panicking; on the contrary, Christian Horner is advocating patience and asking for time before judging his new driver.

“It was a difficult day for him because not doing [Free Practice 3] on a circuit where he has never raced – he is the only driver on the grid who has not raced here – immediately put him in difficulty, said the Red Bull Team Principal at the microphone of the F1. His first attempt was pretty decent, considering the lack of mileage, but unfortunately there was a blockage on the second lap, a mistake on the third, and the pressure just kept mounting at that point. So we can't judge him on his performance today, but we hope he can have a reasonable race tomorrow."

Lawson helped by rain on Sunday?

For Christian Horner, the comparison between Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson is not relevant in these first Grands Prix of the season... even though the gap between the two drivers exceeded a second in Q1, a chasm. “Max is a machine to be around. You can’t judge Liam on what we’ve seen so far. That would be very unfair, believes the British leaderHe's had a very difficult weekend so far. Let's see how he goes in the race tomorrow, and then, of course, when we get to some tracks that he's starting to know, I think he'll start to get into the game." Starting 18th, Liam Lawson already sees his weekend in jeopardy... unless the rain gets involved and helps him make an incredible comeback on Sunday. Starting from so far back, the Kiwi could take more risks with his race strategy. But he still has to make it work...

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