Liam Lawson news LIVE: Red Bull latest as Kiwi replaces Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s teammate
RB’s Liam Lawson has taken Sergio Perez’s spot alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull Racing next season
RB’s Liam Lawson has been promoted to Red Bull and will replace the axed Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s teammate for the 2025 F1 season.
Red Bull called time on their four-year relationship with Perez yesterday after a difficult season in which the Mexican struggled to keep pace not only with world title-winning teammate Verstappen but also rivals from McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari, finishing eighth in the drivers’ standings. It also meant Red Bull finished third in the constructors’ championship and ceded their crown to McLaren.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the past four years with Red Bull,” Perez said. “We broke records and reached remarkable milestones.”
While Perez’s future is now in doubt, with no seat currently available on the grid next season, New Zealander Lawson has been rewarded after impressing for sister team RB this year.
Follow all the latest reaction and F1 developments in the live blog below.
NEW: Valtteri Bottas reunites with Mercedes F1 team after missing out on seat in 2025
Valtteri Bottas has returned to Mercedes as the team’s F1 reserve driver in 2025.
Sauber dropped the Finnish driver at the end of the 2024 season after three years together but Bottas will rejoin the Silver Arrows - where he raced from 2017-2021 and claimed five constructors’ titles in a row - as backup to George Russell and Kimi Antonelli next year.
A spot has opened up as a reserve at Mercedes after Mick Schumacher left the team following the 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Full story:
Valtteri Bottas reunites with Mercedes after missing out on F1 seat in 2025
The Finnish driver will link up with the Silver Arrows in the paddock next year
Liam Lawson confirmed as Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull F1 in 2025
Liam Lawson will replace Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull in 2025.
New Zealand driver Lawson, 22, has raced only 11 times in Formula One – five in 2023 and six in 2024 – but has been handed the opportunity of a lifetime after impressing in the closing races of this season. He replaced Daniel Ricciardo at RB in September and will fill in for Perez, who parted ways with Red Bull on Wednesday.
Lawson has been promoted by Christian Horner ahead of Yuki Tsunoda, who will race for the sister team Racing Bulls for the fifth successive year in 2025.
Liam Lawson confirmed as Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull F1 in 2025
Christian Horner has opted to promote New Zealand racer Lawson from Red Bull’s sister team
Sergio Perez’s next move after Red Bull exit revealed by Christian Horner
Christian Horner has revealed what Sergio Perez’s next move will be after Red Bull confirmed his exit following a disastrous 2024 F1 season.
The Mexican endured a torrid run of results this year as he finished eighth in the drivers’ standings – a mammoth 285 points behind teammate and champion Max Verstappen.
The 34-year-old’s sub-par performances ultimately cost Red Bull the constructors’ title as McLaren pipped Ferrari to the crown in the final race of the season, thanks to Lando Norris’s win in Abu Dhabi.
And Red Bull boss Horner has now explained what Perez will do ahead of the 2025 campaign, with no other seat lined up.
Sergio Perez’s next move after Red Bull exit revealed by Christian Horner
Perez has been axed by Red Bull after a torrid season in which he finished 285 points behind teammate Max Verstappen
Valtteri Bottas reunites with Mercedes F1 team after missing out on seat in 2025
Valtteri Bottas has returned to Mercedes as the team’s reserve driver in 2025.
Sauber dropped the Finnish driver at the end of the 2024 season after three years together but Bottas will rejoin the Silver Arrows - where he raced from 2017-2021 - as backup to George Russell and Kimi Antonelli next year.
Bottas said: “I’m happy to finally answer the question I’ve posed over the past month. Returning home to the Mercedes family as Third Driver for 2025 is what’s next and I couldn’t be more pleased.”
Valtteri Bottas reunites with Mercedes after missing out on F1 seat in 2025
The Finnish driver will link up with the Silver Arrows in the paddock next year
Sergio Perez leaves Red Bull
“I would like to thank Checo for all he has done for Oracle Red Bull Racing over the past four seasons,” Team Principal Christian Horner said.
“From the moment he joined in 2021 he proved himself to be an extraordinary team player, helping us to two Constructors’ titles and to our first 1-2 finish in the Drivers’ championship.
“His five wins, all on street circuits, were also a spectacular mark of his determination to always push to the limit. While Checo will not race for the team next season, he will always be an extremely popular Team member and a treasured part of our history. Thank you, Checo.”
Cadillac reach ‘multi-year’ agreement with F1 team in major boost to 2026 entry
Cadillac have confirmed a “multi-year agreement” with Ferrari to supply the American team’s power units and gearboxes from 2026.
F1 rejected Andretti’s bid in partnership with GM earlier this year but with former boss Michael Andretti out of the picture, a GM entry led by businessman Dan Towriss – the majority shareholder of Andretti Global – is set to join for the season after next.
General Motors-owned Cadillac announced last week that former Marussia boss Graeme Lowdon will be their team principal when they join F1 in 2026
Cadillac reach agreement with F1 team in major boost to 2026 entry
The General Motors owned outfit are set to join Formula One as an 11th team in 2026
F1 2024 season awards:
Worst race
Bahrain Grand Prix – For all the soap-opera off the track at the season-opener in Bahrain, it was business as usual for Red Bull on the tarmac. A one-two finish – and a dud of a race.
To much relief, it did not set the tone for the rest of the year.
On the podium: Japan, Monaco
F1 2024 season awards:
Best race
Brazilian Grand Prix – A championship-deciding, drama-inducing weekend in Sao Paulo.
Heavy rain meant we had qualifying on Sunday morning and, such is the grid that formed, it looked set to result in a massive points swing in Norris’s favour. There were also five crashes in helter-skelter qualifying minutes.
But the race proved to be a masterclass in wet-weather driving from Verstappen. While others slipped and slid across the racetrack and into the walls, the Dutchman was the epitome of perfection.
Podium places: British Grand Prix; Austrian Grand Prix
F1 2024 season awards:
Rising star
Ollie Bearman – A debut of dreams for the British teenager in Saudi Arabia, filling in seamlessly for Carlos Sainz to score points on his F1 debut for Ferrari.
From that moment on, his 2025 seat at Haas was virtually secured. He took his chance. It did not matter that he finished a lowly 12th in the F2 standings.
Podium places: Gabriel Bortoleto; Franco Colapinto
F1 2024 season awards:
Overtake of the year
Alex Albon, Canada – This was a spectacular manoeuvre.
Down the back straight at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Albon weaved to the outside to surge past Ricciardo, before slipping ahead of Esteban Ocon down the inside before the final chicane.
Exquisite car placement in between two cars.
Podium places: Max Verstappen, Brazil; Oscar Piastri, Azerbaijan
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