Red Bull has announced that it will continue with Liam Lawson in 2025. After months of speculation, it is now clear that the young New Zealander will inherit Sergio Pérez’s seat. Advisor Helmut Marko states that it was a ‘luxury problem’ to appoint a replacement – both Yuki Tsunoda and Lawson were in line for promotion. The latter came out on top, largely due to his mental resilience.
“It was very, very close between the two,” team boss Christian Horner previously told ESPN. Advisor Helmut Marko, who has long been a significant influence on the line-up within the two Red Bull teams, shares this view. “The engineers presented comparative figures that we used as the basis for the decision,” he explained in a conversation with F1-Insider. “In principle, it was a luxury problem; both deserved to be promoted.”
‘Tsunoda took it well’
It was already certain that Sergio Pérez would have to make way regardless. Helmut Marko hinted several times this year that the Mexican would be sacrificed. However, it took a long time for Red Bull to make the decision, partly because it was not immediately clear who should replace him. In the end, the 81-year-old Marko admitted that 22-year-old Liam Lawson offers more future prospects. “He can improve even more in the future,” said the Austrian. “Especially his mental strength was ultimately decisive.
In recent months, Marko has also shown himself to be a strong supporter of Yuki Tsunoda. He repeatedly emphasized how much the young Japanese driver has grown over the past four years. However, Tsunoda has not yet been promoted to the main team. “He is currently in Japan – I spoke to him on the phone,” Marko revealed. “He took the news relatively well. I told him to keep pushing at Visa RB and we’ll see. He responded positively.”
