Christian Horner reveals reason for snubbing Yuki Tsunoda for Liam Lawson at Red Bull
Christian Horner opened up about the reasons for ditching Yuki Tsunoda and selecting Liam Lawson for a promotion to Red Bull.
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Liam Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda and Christian Horner (via IMAGO)
Sergio Perez’s woeful performance in the 2024 season opened up rumors of Liam Lawson or Yuki Tsunoda replacing the former. Red Bull recently announced that Perez parted ways with the team with Lawson being the choice of replacement. While Tsunoda seemed like an ideal option, the Kiwi was preferred over his counterpart at RB.
Christian Horner revealed the reasons for snubbing Yuki Tsunoda and selecting Liam Lawson for a promotion to Red Bull. Horner pointed out that Lawson was slightly faster than Tsunoda during the races. The Kiwi showcased great results and potential within just 11 races under his name. As a result, the Red Bull boss believed that the 22-year-old would only go upwards from this point.
With Liam, when you look and go into the analytics of his race, pace was slightly better in the races that he did. His qualifying pace was very tight with Yuki, and you’ve got to assume that the potential with Liam having only done 11 grand prix, is he’s only going to get better and stronger. He’s shown real mental resilience and toughness.
Christian Horner told ESPN
Apart from better race pace, Lawson also showcased versatility during difficult conditions. Horner recalled the Kiwi’s debut at the 2023 Dutch GP after replacing the injured Daniel Ricciardo. The 22-year-old quickly got to speed and competed with the dominant Max Verstappen back then. Hence, all these contributed to be the reason for snubbing Tsunoda for the seat.
A couple of things have stood out with me with Liam – how versatile he is, you put him into a situation, he gets on with it. If you remember his debut in Zandvoort after Daniel broke his fingers, he was racing against Max on his out lap.
Christian Horner added
Liam Lawson ‘not afraid’ to race wheel-to-wheel when required
Liam Lawson’s performance mid-way through the 2024 season showcased that he had a killer mindset while on track. Horner noted that Lawson had a gritty racer mentality especially after racing for Ferrari in the DTM. Moreover, the 51-year-old highlighted that the Kiwi wasn’t afraid to go wheel-to-wheel or rub wheels when necessary on track.
He’s got that kind of gritty racer mentality. He did a year in the DTM where he adjusted to driving a Ferrari GT car incredibly quickly alongside Alex Albon and generally had the upper hand. And again, his racecraft has been really one of his key strengths. So he’s not afraid to go wheel-to-wheel and even rub wheels where necessary. So I think he’s going to do a great job for us.
Christian Horner noted
Yuki Tsunoda certainly won’t be impressed by Red Bull’s decision to choose Lawson. However, the 23-year-old will focus on his performances with RB and dream of a move up the chain. The Kiwi on the other hand has a massive mission to match upto Verstappen’s pace at Milton Keynes in the 2025 season.
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Aditya Pandya
(1388 Articles Published)