The New Zealander will replace Isack Hadjar, who has a wrist injury, at the Dutch GP. Lawson returns to Red Bull for the first time since his brief stint in 2025.
Liam Lawson returns to Red Bull for the Dutch Grand Prix after Isack Hadjar suffered a wrist injury that prevents him from competing at Zandvoort. The New Zealander, who currently races for Racing Bulls, will replace the Frenchman at the Austrian team, while Yuki Tsunoda will take his seat at the sister team: "It wasn't what I expected for this weekend, but it's a good opportunity" declared Lawson in Thursday's press day.
The 24 year old driver faces his first race for Red Bull since his brief two round stint in 2025, when he was promoted and then demoted back to Racing Bulls in a direct swap with Tsunoda: "Overall, surely in terms of being in Formula 1 I've had many more races since then; I feel much more comfortable competing in this sport, but it's going to be a very challenging weekend" he stated.
Lawson explained how he found out about the opportunity: "I landed on Monday from vacation, I had a call, I literally hadn't even gotten off the plane and I was already talking to Alan Permane and basically they communicated it to me. The week changed quickly from what it was going to be to preparing for Red Bull" he recounted.
The New Zealander acknowledged that the sprint format adds an extra layer of difficulty: "It's a sprint weekend, so it's going to be a fast learning process tomorrow, but that's what we're focused on. We tried to do that yesterday in the simulator. If we can speed up that learning process as much as possible, that will help us over the weekend" he explained.
Lawson also referred to the challenges he will face: "Probably the new car, but obviously everything else that comes with it. As challenging as it's going to be, it's also very exciting. I'm sure getting in the car at the start of practice is going to be quite strange and it's going to take me time to get used to it, but honestly I think trying to learn as much as possible through sprint qualifying and the sprint and being as prepared as possible for Saturday's qualifying, that's probably the goal" he stated.
The New Zealand driver dismissed any suggestion that his return to Red Bull is a revenge: "Honestly, it feels like it happened a long time ago and the circumstances are very different now. I haven't seen it like that. For me, we've had a very good year so far and obviously I'm grateful to have been chosen for something like this" he declared.
Lawson has had a solid first half of the season with Racing Bulls, scoring points regularly and proving his worth. Now he has the opportunity to demonstrate his talent at Red Bull, the team that left him on the bench in 2025: "I'm really focused on trying to get something out of the weekend. It would be great to do it and have a good weekend, but I'm sure it's going to be a challenge" he concluded.
Lawson's opportunity is a test for the New Zealander, who seeks to establish himself in Formula 1 and prove that he deserves a seat at a top team. Zandvoort will be the scene of his return.
