Ferrari F1 chief issues 'brutal' Red Bull verdict after Liam Lawson axe

Ferrari’s Formula 1 chief Fred Vasseur has spoken regarding Red Bull's controversial decision to replace Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda after just two grands prix.

Lawson was promoted to the main Red Bull team for 2025 after a brief stint at Racing Bulls last season, but he will now return to the junior team, with Tsunoda going the other way and in turn becoming Max Verstappen's new teammate.

When asked by L’Equipe if he thought two races was too premature to sack Lawson, Vasseur delivered his take on Red Bull’s decision and refused to interfere.

“Those are Red Bull stories. You don't know how difficult it is to judge what's going on in a team," he said.

"We don't know what's going on there, what leads them to this decision. There are twelve billion reasons behind it, that only the team and the driver know. And sometimes, the driver doesn't know them.

“So I prefer not to comment. It might seem brutal because it's been two races, but we don't have 10 percent of the elements to judge. I hate it when people judge what we do, so I'm not going to do it for others.”

Should Red Bull have sacked Lawson?

Following Lawson’s exit, the 23-year-old released an emotional statement on social media where he revealed that the demotion was ‘tough’ but was grateful to Red Bull for providing the opportunity he had dreamed of since he was a kid.

Tsunoda will step into action with Red Bull straight away at next weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, where he will hope to be in the fight in the top ten during his home race. However, the stories of the previous inhabitants of the second Red Bull seat could come to haunt him.

The Japanese star will be aware of the pressure of going up against Max Verstappen, and the present difficulties with the RB21, with the champion himself claiming that the Racing Bulls car is easier to drive than its sister team’s car.

Despite the pressure to perform, Helmut Marko has reportedly given Tsunoda a longer deadline to prove his abilities at Red Bull than Lawson and could have until the ‘end of the season’.

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