Liam Lawson’s Racing Bulls uncertainty baffles F1 pundit
Liam Lawson is very happy with where he and Racing Bulls are at
James Hinchcliffe is baffled that there is even a suggestion that Liam Lawson could lose his Racing Bulls seat to Formula 2 driver Nikola Tsolov.
After all, he says, the New Zealander is the de facto team leader, ninth in the Drivers’ Championship standings, where he is best of the rest behind the big four teams, and has propelled Racing Bulls to fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship.
James Hinchcliffe backs Liam Lawson to retain Racing Bulls seat in 2027
Although Red Bull has confirmed its line-up for next year’s championship, Racing Bulls has yet to decide on either of its two drivers.
While the team could stick with incumbents Lawson and Arvid Lindblad, one of them could also make way for Red Bull junior Tsolov, who is the “next in line” for a Formula 1 promotion according to Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane.
But what is perplexing former IndyCar driver Hinchcliffe is that the rumour mill suggests it is Lawson’s seat that is on the line.
The 24-year-old has led Racing Bulls’ charge this season, scoring 61 of the team’s 100 points. He also scored 14 points during his three race weekends with Red Bull, where he filled in for the injured Isack Hadjar, to bring his points tally to 75 for the season.
That’s put him ninth in the Drivers’ Championship, where he is best of the rest behind Formula 1’s top four teams.
Having summed up Lawson’s achievements, Hinchcliffe wrote in his latest F1.com column: “Imagine all that, and then imagine it’s your seat that’s under threat. From a driver that’s never started a Grand Prix.
“That scenario is nightmare fuel for a racing driver. The kind of dream you wake up from in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and think, ‘thank god it was just a dream’.
“Liam Lawson, however, is living it out in reality right now.”
Hinchcliffe, though, conceded that both Lindblad and Tsolov also have a case for a Racing Bulls seat.
Stating that Tsolov “seems to perform better” with “every step he moves up the ladder system towards Formula 1”, he reckons Lindblad has “performed very well as a rookie” and can expect to take a “jump” forward next season.
But while Racing Bulls may be in a “predicament” with three drivers vying for an F1 race seat in 2027, Hinchcliffe is adamant that Lawson has done more than enough to deserve another season with the team.
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“Can you really be considering replacing the driver who is delivering at the level of Lawson? Can he be consistently scoring points, leading the team, and still worried for his job?” he said.
“If I were in charge of the Red Bull driver program, as promising as Tsolov is, I would retain the status quo for 2027.
“You obviously want to see what jump Lindblad makes, and in my view, Lawson has performed too strongly on too many weekends to consider replacing him. And remember, he still hasn’t had a full season in F1 driving for the same team the whole season!
“Lawson himself was probably the one least impressed with his brief stint at RBR this year filling in for Isack Hadjar – which says something, as most people thought he did a stellar job given the circumstances. It says that he is a fighter. That he is a racer. That he wants more.
“Continuity is rarely a bad thing in motorsports, and Racing Bulls are in a great spot to capitalise on that. Tsolov’s time will surely come, even if it takes a year on the sidelines.
“But as it stands right now, I think Lawson has done more than enough to justify his place on the grid and should be lining up once again alongside Lindblad in 2027.”
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