Red Bull’s seven shortest driver stints – and why they ended

After one of the quickest switches of a full-time driver in Formula 1 history, we have taken a look at the shortest ever stints in at the Red Bull team.

The team have become known for their ruthless streak in their time in Formula 1, and a couple of these drivers were given particular short shrift over the past two decades.

Red Bull: Seven shortest driver stints and why they ended

7. Christian Klien – 28 races

One of Red Bull’s first driver line-up in 2005 alongside David Coulthard, Christian Klien was announced as a race driver in a seat share with a driver further down this list.

Scoring 11 points across his two seasons in the sport, while Coulthard scored 38 in the same period (using Formula 1’s previous, less generous points system, remember), Klien was not retained for 2007 and replaced with then-Williams driver Mark Webber.

Refusing a move to ChampCar with a Red Bull-backed team to chase Formula 1 opportunities, Klien was moved out of the seat for the final three races in 2006 – again, for another driver further down this list.

Without a race seat in 2007, he took on test roles with Honda and Spyker, staying in a test driver position before returning to the grid in 2010 and spending three races with the ill-fated HRT outfit.

Klien’s racing career remained varied after his time in Formula 1, however, taking an outright podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2008 before embarking on a long career in sportscars, which continues to this day, combining that with Formula 1 punditry on Servus TV, Red Bull’s in-house broadcaster.

6. Alex Albon – 26 races

Alex Albon was parachuted into the senior Red Bull team only halfway through his first season in Formula 1, back in 2019, replacing another driver on this list, who was given even fewer races.

Taking in the rest of 2019 and given the whole of 2020 to perform, he faced the now-familiar challenge of trying to match up against Max Verstappen, which he was unable to do on a regular enough basis, to keep his seat – finishing on 105 points compared to 214 for the Dutchman.

In announcing he would be retained as third driver for 2021 alongside competing in the DTM series, Albon was replaced by the experience of Sergio Perez, who had just left Racing Point after being jettisoned for the arrival of Sebastian Vettel.

Perez was in the form of his life at that stage, having taken his first Grand Prix victory in Sakhir.

Albon would return to the grid, though, undertaking a new challenge with Williams – where he has remained ever since.

5. Daniil Kvyat – 21 races

Having matched up well against the highly-rated Daniel Ricciardo in 2015, in fact scoring three more points than the Honey Badger, a finish outside the points in his home race in Russia in 2016, despite finishing on the podium the race beforehand in China, was enough for Red Bull to demote Daniil Kvyat back to Toro Rosso.

This, though, was in favour of promoting a teenage Max Verstappen to the team. While undoubtedly harsh on Kvyat, Verstappen’s first race for Red Bull spoke for itself, taking victory at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

Rather than being an indictment on his own talent, though, Christian Horner explained this move was more to do with wanting to promote Verstappen, saying at the time: “Max has proven to be an outstanding young talent. His performance at Toro Rosso has been impressive so far and we are pleased to give him the opportunity to drive for Red Bull Racing.

“We are in the unique position to have all four drivers across Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso under long term contracts with Red Bull, so we have the flexibility to move them between the two teams.

“Dany will be able to continue his development at Toro Rosso, in a team that he is familiar with, giving him the chance to regain his form and show his potential.”

Kvyat continued in Formula 1 until the end of 2017 with Toro Rosso, and now competes in sportscar racing as part of the Lamborghini Hypercar programme.

More on Red Bull and their previous driver changes

👉 All the mid-season driver swaps Red Bull have made in their history

👉 Inside Red Bull: Christian Horner and the other major players in the team’s hierarchy

4. Pierre Gasly – 12 races

After serving a two-year apprenticeship with Toro Rosso, Pierre Gasly was promoted to Red Bull after Ricciardo departed for Renault for the 2019 season, but the Frenchman would be the first driver after the Honey Badger to discover the difficulties of partnering a driver who would go on to win four titles in a row – and counting.

Struggling to get on top of his performance in the Red Bull, it was decided after just 12 races that Gasly would go back to Toro Rosso, where he would remain until the end of 2021.

Rather than wilt, however, he thrived at Faenza – scoring his first podium later in 2019, earning an emotional first career victory at Monza in 2020, before heading on to a factory drive at Alpine in 2023, where he remains on the grid in 2025.

3. Vitantonio Liuzzi – 4 races

Having been announced as Red Bull’s test driver in 2005, Vitantonio Liuzzi was given the seat for several races as part of an existing agreement that saw him share a drive with Christian Klien.

As such, however, he only took part in four races as a Red Bull driver that season before moving back to third driver duties.

He would be back on the grid in 2006 when the team’s new sister outfit, Toro Rosso, emerged after Red Bull purchased Minardi, but those four starts, yielding one point, would be the only races Liuzzi would take in as a Red Bull driver.

The Italian raced on with Toro Rosso for two more seasons before returning to the grid in 2009 with Force India, racing for them for two years before a move to HRT in 2011, which would be his final year on the Formula 1 grid.

Liuzzi carried on his career in a variety of categories until 2017, and now occasionally serves as an FIA steward at Grand Prix weekends.

2. Robert Doornbos – 3 races

After Klien’s stint with Red Bull ended abruptly before the 2006 season completed, and with Mark Webber already signed for the 2007 season alongside David Coulthard, test driver Robert Doornbos stepped into the breach for the final three rounds of the campaign.

Like Franco Colapinto at Williams in 2024, he went into the seat knowing he did not have a race drive with the team for the following year, with the former Minardi driver registering two P12 finishes and a P13 for his efforts.

He remained Red Bull’s test driver after that stint alongside a run in IndyCar, and he currently works as a prominent Formula 1 analyst on Dutch television.

1. Liam Lawson – 2 races

The most cut-throat of all the Red Bull demotions – and potentially one of the most ruthless in Formula 1 history after just two races – Liam Lawson was dropped back to Red Bull’s sister squad in the early stages of 2025.

Having failed to get out of Q1 in Australia, Lawson twice qualified last on the grid for the Sprint and Grand Prix respectively, failing to get off the mark for his new team after impressing in two cameo stints for AlphaTauri/VCARB in 2023 and 2024.

Still inexperienced at the time of his swap for Yuki Tsunoda, Lawson has time on his side to make a good impression and look to move his way back up the ladder in Formula 1, with several of the drivers above having gone on to experience strong careers in the sport.

Read next: All the mid-season driver swaps Red Bull have made in their F1 history