Marko Confirms Lawson As Driver For One Of Red Bull's Teams In 2025

Helmut Marko confirmed that Liam Lawson will drive one of Red Bull's cars—either in VCARB or Red Bull Racing in 2025.

At the start of the summer break, Red Bull's motorsport advisor Helmut Marko stated that Red Bull will announce what happens with their reserve driver Liam Lawson in September.

The man from Gratz also revealed that one of the F1 teams was interested in having the 22-year-old "on loan," perhaps already this year, but Red Bull rejected this idea.

New Zealander would be free to join a rival team if he didn't have a place in either VCARB or Red Bull Racing for the 2025 season. However, it now seems clear that he will stay with the Red Bull family.

During his interview with Kleine Zeitung ahead of the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix, Helmut Marko said that Lawson will be driving one of Red Bull's cars next season: "Next year, he'll be sitting in one of our cars."

Which one will it be? That isn't clear yet. However, what is important is this statement implies that either Daniel Ricciardo or Sergio Perez will definitely not be driving for Red Bull teams next year.

If Red Bull plans to make a definite decision in September, the following four races—the Dutch, Italian, Azerbaijan, and the Singapore Grand Prix—will be critical for Ricciardo and Perez.

Many pundits suggested the Mexican driver should have been replaced already during the summer break, but he got the final chance to prove he has what it takes. Marko said:

The 81-year-old already stated that he believed Perez had enough speed, and the only thing he lacked was consistency. But what would happen if he didn't regain it in the next four races? Marko wants to give the 34-year-old chance before delivering a final verdict: "Let's take a look at that first."