Strong performances from Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda put Red Bull in a deeper conundrum for their 2027 driver seats.
Good news for Red Bull: Liam Lawson has seemingly improved since his unheralded two-race stint with the main team last season. Plus, their reserve driver, Yuki Tsunoda, proved in Zandvoort that he can still handle a Formula One car if given the opportunity.
The bad news? Well, each F1 team can only slot in two drivers in the grid.
Max Verstappen certainly isn't going anywhere, having signed a new contract extension that will keep him in the Red Bull garage through 2030. The other Red Bull driver, Isack Hadjar, has been Mr. Consistency this season.
Then, you have Arvid Lindblad, who is doing a splendid job in his rookie year with the Racing Bulls. It would be a shame to strip him of an F1 seat this early, given his obvious potential.
That might leave two (or even three) names in the running for one Racing Bulls seat.
Lawson. F2 championship leader Nikola Tsolov. And a very slim chance of Tsunoda.
It might not be Red Bull's year, but their garage certainly houses some good drivers.
Lawson, Tsunoda have chips on their shoulders
He might not admit that he has "ghosts to vanquish", but Liam Lawson's performance this season has redemption written all over it. Through 12 races, the Racing Bulls driver has 49 points to his name, more than any midfield driver.
His best result was a couple of sixth-place finishes in Monaco and Silverstone. Then, he replaced the injured Hadjar on the main Red Bull team, and impressed right away.
Lawson qualified P8 in the Dutch Grand Prix, just a spot behind Max Verstappen. The next day, he drove beautifully, climbing to seventh place and scoring six points.
The Kiwi driver might be a shoo-in for the Racing Bulls seat in 2027, for now.
Yuki Tsunoda is another name worth keeping an eye on. He was assigned as reserve driver after an underwhelming campaign with Red Bull last year. But he quickly assured everyone at Zandvoort that he still has the motor and adaptability of an F1 driver.
Tsolov is next in line
Nikola Tsolov is showing everyone why he is a top prize in the Red Bull camp. The 19-year-old Campos Racing driver is leading the Formula Two championship by 20 points over MP Motorsport's Gabriele Mini. He won in Australia, Monaco, Austria, and Silverstone.
As of time of writing, Tsolov is in Imola testing for the Racing Bulls. And it's only a matter of time before he can call that car his own.
