Liam Lawson reveals public response to hard-hitting Red Bull demotion comments

Liam Lawson did not hold back when he discussed his Red Bull demotion, and more, on a recent High Performance Podcast session.

Refuting a narrative put forward by then Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, and also calling out Alpine over the team’s treatment of Jack Doohan, Lawson said that it was “very easy” to be as open as he was on that platform. Lawson spoke of “very positive feedback” after his appearance.

Liam Lawson found it ‘very easy’ to speak his mind

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After two stints with the Red Bull junior team, Racing Bulls, Lawson was called-up to the senior squad ahead of the 2025 season. He lasted just two races before being demoted back to Racing Bulls, swapping seats with Yuki Tsunoda.

Lawson has since established himself with the Faenza squad, hitting arguably his best form yet in F1 2026.

In a recent High Performance Podcast session, Lawson did not shy away from disecting that Red Bull demotion.

Horner had told Sky Sports that the New Zealander was struggling mentally. Lawson said that narrative “could not be further from what it was actually like.”

Lawson also spoke of the support which he received from former Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen, who publicly criticised Lawson’s swift demotion.

Red Bull and Alpine were also called out by Lawson for “unfair” F1 firings, as he drew attention to Doohan’s situation at Alpine.

Even before the Australian got going in 2025 – due to be his first full F1 season – there were rumours about his Alpine future. After six rounds, he was replaced by Franco Colapinto, and never got another shot.

Lawson spoke of a positive reception from the public in the aftermath of his comments.

Lawson also received praise from racer turned Sky F1 pundit Naomi Schiff.

“It was good,” Lawson told PlanetF1.com and others of his High Performance Podcast appearance. “It was obviously a place where it’s very easy to be quite open about all that stuff. I hope that people got a good understanding from it, and hopefully they enjoyed it.

“But I’ve had very positive feedback. As I said on the podcast, I’m not on social media that much, so it’s not something I have personally seen too much of, but just what has been said by people, and I’ve received quite a lot of positive feedback from it. It was good.”

More on Liam Lawson from PlanetF1.com

Liam Lawson hits back at Red Bull ‘mentally struggling’ demotion narrative

Liam Lawson calls out Red Bull and Alpine over ‘unfair’ F1 firings

Remaining with Racing Bulls for F1 2026, Lawson has put 39 points on the board thus far. Only twice has he failed to score.

His best showing yet as a Formula 1 driver, Lawson was asked whether having a full pre-season – the first time he has experienced this – is positively impacting his form.

“I mean, everything helps,” he said. “Naturally, the more experience you have in anything, it helps.

“But I think this year, coming in, especially with these new cars, it makes a big difference, doing all the pre-season development, being aware of exactly where we’re focused on the car, what we’re developing. I think all that makes a big difference.”

With rookie teammate Arvid Lindblad on 20 points, Racing Bulls sits on 59 and P6 in the Constructors’ standings, a point behind Alpine.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

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