One Formula One driver, a multiple grand prix winner, sent me a text this week: ‘The gradual decline of the House of Red Bull.’
A source close to the team called it ‘chaos’.
These statements are in relation to the sacking after two races this season of Liam Lawson as No 2 to Max Verstappen. The New Zealander struggled for results, qualified at the back, and is slung away to Red Bulls’ second-string Racing Bulls, his dream finished, it seems, at least for now, perhaps permanently.
Yuki Tsunoda is Lawson’s replacement and will take the seat in his homeland of Japan next weekend.
At the centre of the imbroglio is Helmut Marko, 81-year-old motor racing adviser to the energy drinks company, a respected associate of the company’s late founder Dietrich Mateschitz. He is Austrian and, along with team principal Christian Horner, the major voice in driver selection.
Horner’s role is good cop to Marko’s bad cop. Though it is Horner who delivers news to drivers of both their hiring and firing.
That said the final decision goes before the shareholders, Thailander Chalerm Yoovidhya and Mark Mateschitz, 32-year-old successor to Dietrich who recently paid some £500million to by Bernie Ecclestone’s F1 cars, all 69 of them.
The shareholders need to endorse any major changes at Red Bull, as they did in the axing of Lawson.
Mail Sport can reveal that Lawson got the job in the first place because, at least in part, design guru Adrian Newey, who has now joined Aston Martin, was against Tsunoda getting the seat.
Newey viewed him as too prone to tantrums, a toy-thrower in the cockpit. Various engineers under Newey were swayed by this argument. Hence Lawson being the favoured choice to take over from Sergio Perez for this year, the Mexican having been ditched at the cost of £18m in an unpaid contract.
There was neither a big objection nor massive endorsement about Lawson’s elevation among the Verstappen camp – Max, father Jos and manager Raymond Vermeulen.
It is understood that Lawson’s poor performance in the opening race in Melbourne was too much for Marko, the no-nonsense developer of the team’s junior programme.
Horner made an argument to give Lawson another chance, which he got in China, but he again underperformed, finishing 12th. He had been shown up once more by the phenomenon that is Verstappen, who finished fourth after his second-place finish in Melbourne, where Lawson crashed out.
But I understand that Verstappen is less than happy with Lawson’s dismissal. He thinks it too harsh (though in the first resort, like Newey, he was not crazy about Tsunoda being his team-mate).
His disquiet comes despite Marko being one of the key pillars of his employment at Red Bull. The other non-negotiables are his father and manager (Jos and Raymond) and his race engineer GP (Gianpiero Lambiase). Though Horner is crucial to the team’s operation day-to-day, he is not seen as so vital to Max’s sensitivities.
As for Marko, he raced in Formula One in 1971 and 1972, losing sight in his left eye when debris from Ronnie Petersen’s March ripped through his visor. It ended his racing career at 29, by when he had won the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Red Bull-Verstappen bond was stretched last year by the scandal over texts allegedly sent by Horner to a female employee. Horner was cleared in two internal inquiries. Verstappen’s father and Horner fell out big time. Max kept his counsel, calling for calm to prevail.
Marko was a major ally, so much so that there is a clause in Verstappen’s contract that states that if Marko were to go, the team’s star driver could also do so before his term runs out in 2028.
A source close to Red Bull said: ‘It’s Helmut as well as Christian who is to blame for the fiasco over Liam.’ It’s interesting Marko is not excused. This may just be a spur to Verstappen leaving the team, with Mercedes and Aston Martin potential landing pads.
Perhaps the hassle enveloping the team might have been avoided if Red Bull had chosen a different avenue last year, when Carlos Sainz was on the market after being released by Ferrari, where he was jettisoned to make way for Lewis Hamilton.
Some within the team were up for employing the Spaniard, who spent three seasons racing for the junior team, then known as Toro Rosso, from 2015 to 2017. He and the Dutch world champion were team-mates there for a little over a year.
However, forces within the Verstappen camp were less keen on the reunion. One insider says that Jos and Carlos Sainz Snr, world champion rally driver father of Carlos Jnr, did not get on. Off the menu.
In an interview with the BBC on Friday, Marko said of Lawson: ‘His performance was unfortunately not good enough and that comes from self-confidence. He’s not kicked out of Formula One. Racing Bulls will give him the chance to recover and his career will start again.’
As for Tsunoda, and why he was previously overlooked, Marko said: ‘He made a big step. It’s strange that after four years, in his fifth year now, he is a stronger personality. He has more confidence and he did two very good races.’
Tsunoda has been in the simulator at Milton Keynes this week and is said to have given productive, informed feedback.
He’s safe, for now.
With the recent developments, it is clear that the Red Bull team is going through a period of change and uncertainty. The departure of Liam Lawson and the arrival of Yuki Tsunoda have raised questions about the team’s future and the role of key figures such as Helmut Marko and Christian Horner.
The relationship between Max Verstappen and the team is also under scrutiny, with the driver reportedly unhappy with the treatment of Lawson and the potential for him to leave the team in the future.
As the season progresses, it will be interesting to see how these developments play out and what impact they will have on the team’s performance on the track.
In conclusion, the recent events at Red Bull have highlighted the challenges and complexities of managing a top-level Formula One team. The team’s ability to navigate these challenges will be crucial in determining their success in the coming seasons.
FAQs:
Q: Who is the new driver for Red Bull?
A: Yuki Tsunoda has replaced Liam Lawson as the new driver for Red Bull.
Q: Why was Liam Lawson sacked?
A: Liam Lawson was sacked due to his poor performance in the opening two races of the season.
Q: Is Max Verstappen happy with the treatment of Liam Lawson?
A: No, Max Verstappen is reportedly unhappy with the treatment of Liam Lawson and the way he was sacked by the team.
Q: What is the future of Helmut Marko at Red Bull?
A: Helmut Marko’s future at Red Bull is uncertain, with some reports suggesting that he may be under pressure to leave the team.
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