Here is the situation at Racing Bulls: every team on the grid except them and Haas has already locked in their driver pairings for next year, leaving the Faenza-based squad to ponder a very tight squeeze. Team Principal Alan Permane has confirmed that the final decision on who will drive for the outfit in 2027 will be made "in the coming weeks". They are simply taking their time, and honestly, who can blame them when three exceptional talents are fighting for just two seats?
The numbers tell a compelling story about why this choice is so difficult. Liam Lawson and rookie Arvid Lindblad have extracted every ounce of pace from the machine to regularly fight in the points, pushing Racing Bulls all the way to P5 in the constructors' standings. Lawson has put 69 points on the board—including 14 from his time stepping in as Isack Hadjar’s substitute at Red Bull—while newcomer Lindblad has chipped in with a solid 38 points so far.
Yet, the garage cannot ignore the pressure from below. Nikola Tsolov is waiting in the wings after turning heads in his very first full season by fighting for the Formula 2 title. Three drivers for two cars simply does not work, as Permane bluntly pointed out when speaking ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix.
“I don't want to give you a definite date. You know, no, that's not going to work. It's going to be in the coming weeks, let's say,” Permane stated. “I mean, we're in no rush. I think everyone knows we've got two fantastic drivers. We've got a fantastic driver in F2 at the moment, and they're all there and ready to go. But three doesn't fit into two, of course, and we're just going to take a little bit more time and make sure we get the right pairing for next year.”
The complication for Racing Bulls goes beyond just the stopwatch. As the traditional proving ground for future Red Bull stars, the team carries the unique responsibility of nurturing young talent while simultaneously chasing results. Lawson and Lindblad are currently steering the squad toward what could be their best-ever result in the Teams’ Championship, yet the mandate to develop the next generation remains loud and clear.
Permane laid out the exact philosophy guiding the boardrooms right now: “There's many, many, many things. I guess top of the list is speed and pace and all that goes with that. But there's lots, of course, in the background because we're in a slightly unique situation, I guess. We want to bring on young drivers, we want to bring on young talent, and of course we have one eye on them progressing in the future. So, it's not just about the here and now, it's also about what they can do in the future.”
