S Poddar
Daniel Ricciardo’s stay at Red Bull is finally over earlier than expected, with the team opting to promote Liam Lawson to replace him for the remaining part of the 2024 Formula 1 season. And this decision to dump the 35-year-old Australian comes after Red Bull’s management cited growing concerns about his performance that led to this drastic change with only six races left in the calendar.
Bringing Lawson into the fold, Red Bull appears to be assessing the young driver’s abilities as it plans for 2025. Team principal Laurent Mekies highly praised Ricciardo, considering his efforts for the team. “Daniel has brought a lot of experience and talent to the team with a fantastic attitude, which has helped everyone to develop and foster a tight team spirit,” Mekies said. The team principal added, “He has been a true gentleman both on and off the track and never without that smile. He will be missed but will always hold a special place within the Red Bull family.”
Lawson, at just 22 years old, has had some exposure to Red Bull, taking over for Ricciardo in five races of last season. Ricciardo suffered a wrist injury as a result of the crash during the Dutch Grand Prix. During that short time with the team, he managed to collect two points with a ninth place position in the Singaporean Grand Prix in 2023. “Liam drove for us last season and coped well under difficult circumstances, so it’ll be a natural transition” said Mekies.
There was no word from Red Bull about the lineup for 2025, though Yuki Tsunoda is already confirmed. Lawson has been bumped up to the second position, so that’s a possible place for him in the near future.
Ricciardo’s farewell is perhaps the saddest moment in a career of his where he becomes one of the most beloved figures in Formula 1. Known for his personality and his humor, Ricciardo has built up the reputation he has through 13 years in the sport. He was counted among the top ones between 2014-2020.
After being promoted from Red Bull’s junior team in 2014, he quickly marked himself by outpacing four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel in his rookie season by claiming three victories while Vettel failed to secure any. This marked the start of a very successful tenure at Red Bull, during which Ricciardo notched seven total wins, largely by deploying his signature aggressive late-brake overtake moves that got a lot of applause from the fans and differentiated him from his peers, especially in the dominant Mercedes circuit days.
But it was after his decision to leave Red Bull at the end of 2018 in pursuit of seeking greener pastures elsewhere because the team had increasingly rallied around his teammate, Max Verstappen, and the challenge was getting stiffer as the prowess of the latter unfolded, culminating in a change of fortunes that Ricciardo could not tame. Now, the Italian wanted a new beginning, thus accepting a very handsome two seasons’ deal worth $55 million from Renault to be the team principal.
Ricciardo performed well in his stint with Renault, outscoring his teammates Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon in successive seasons. A move to McLaren for the 2021 season turned out to be an even worse call. Though he had won the 2021 Italian Grand Prix, the outscoring of teammate Lando Norris turned out to be a consistent feature. McLaren drafted in Oscar Piastri, an Aussie, at the end of the 2022 season; while Ricciardo’s contract, still, had years left on it.
There was then a lifeline provided by Red Bull, with him becoming their reserve driver for 2023. By mid-season 2023, he was promoted to a race seat at their second team after Nyck de Vries stepped out due to some lackluster results, and there was hope that Ricciardo may yet prove to be an adequate substitute for Sergio Perez in the primary team alongside Verstappen. Alas, he failed to outshine his teammate Tsunoda, which may well have sealed his fate for returning to Red Bull.
Ricciardo’s last major victory for Red Bull was the fastest lap during the recent Singaporean Grand Prix, and in doing so inadvertently granted his teammate Verstappen a significant boost by denying title rival Lando Norris an additional point.
This promotion may shine the light to promising future within the Red Bull framework. Coming into limelight, with Perez’s inconsistent run and much-promised pressure for good results, Lawson is set to make a telling impression. Perez signed a new deal in May that lasted until the end of 2026, but his continued woes have left his seat on shaky ground.
After all, the thing is that now Lawson also has a decisive moment in his career: he can consolidate his position in Formula 1 and even later find himself in the top Red Bull team. This calendar of Formula 1 is on a four-week break. The next race will be during the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, from October 18 to 20. It is going to be some tricky months for both Lawson and Red Bull.
