Liam Lawson reveals 'F1 dream' change after Red Bull axe

Liam Lawson has explained that a natural long-held dream of being an F1 champion is no longer as clear as he thought it would be after being axed by Red Bull earlier this year. Lawson was handed an astonishing promotion at the end of last year, replacing Sergio Perez at Red Bull after just 12 grands prix - six in each of 2023 and 2024 with the sister team - as Max Verstappen's team-mate. It was the realisation of everything Lawson had worked towards throughout his junior career, and especially after being taken on as a Red Bull junior in early 2019. But it was a dream that rapidly disintegrated into a nightmare. After just two races, in Australia and China, where Lawson had never turned a wheel in the past, it was decided he would return to Racing Bulls, trading places with Yuki Tsunoda. It has taken a while for Lawson to again find his feet, and he has found himself up against a team-mate in rookie Isack Hadjar, who is fast earning himself the tag of the next driver on the conveyor belt to be handed the task of working alongside Verstappen. Speaking to Sky Sports F1 , and asked whether it was still his dream to return to Red Bull, the New Zealander provided a surprising answer. "It's tough," said Lawson initially. "As much as I wanted to be a Red Bull Racing driver, and that's what I worked towards, from becoming a Red Bull junior, the dream I've had since I was five years old, has been [to be a] world champion, winning in Formula 1 and reaching the top of the sport. "That's more or less where my dream sits, where my goal is, trying to become the best. That's what we're all working towards. "Where I do that is not so clear as much as I thought it was." Lawson's short spell with Red Bull, the shortest of any driver in the team's history, he will forever be remembered for. On reflection, as to whether he could have done anything differently, his response was more circumspect, offering little detail. "Doing it over again, there are probably things that, yes, maybe, you can do differently," he said. "You always learn things afterwards. You always look back in hindsight. There are always things you can do better."