Liam Lawson sits in a strange kind of limbo right now, as Crash.net reports. Despite stellar performances like locking down a third-place starting position at the Brazil Grand Prix, his long-term Formula 1 future remains completely up in the air. We are looking at a driver who has dragged Racing Bulls up to fifth place in the constructors' championship, yet his seat beyond 2026 is far from guaranteed.
That uncertainty is wild when you look at what he is actually achieving on the tarmac. At the Brazil Grand Prix, Lawson crossed the line in eighth place, capping off a run of form that has caught everyone's attention. Red Bull Racing team principal Laurent Mekies was inevitably asked about the Kiwi driver's prospects and whether leadership would step in.
I’ve just spent three minutes trying to tell you that it’s a Racing Bulls decision,
Mekies pointed squarely at the sister squad, explaining, "I’ve said it several times, the Racing Bulls driver decisions are done through Racing Bulls." He added that while they run a shared junior programme that has previously promoted drivers like Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar, the actual F1 stint is entirely down to the individuals earning it.
Instead of entertaining questions about 2027 or potential replacements like junior driver Nikola Tsolov, Mekies chose to focus purely on the talent in front of him. He congratulated Lawson on a very strong weekend and a fantastic run, noting the incredible contrast compared to his struggles at the beginning of the year. "And certainly, from that point, we all see that when you return back to Racing Bulls, he has shown on track another step again," Mekies said. "And what he showed this weekend is the perfect representation of how strongly he’s now performing."
Lawson's journey has already been an absolute rollercoaster. He was promoted to Red Bull in 2025 to race alongside Max Verstappen, only to be dropped early in the season and replaced by Yuki Tsunoda. But when Isack Hadjar suffered an injury earlier in 2026, Lawson jumped back into a Red Bull seat for three Grands Prix and earned a second chance.
Pressed once more on what comes next for the driver, Mekies doubled down with absolute clarity. "I’ve just spent three minutes trying to tell you that it’s a Racing Bulls decision," he stated, refusing to publicly vent an opinion that might dictate a Red Bull Racing stance. With experienced figures like Alan Permane managing the squad and all the data on the table, Mekies concluded that Racing Bulls are right to take their time because there is simply no reason to rush.
F1
F1
