Formula 1 returns this coming weekend in Austin and it will do so with a great novelty. Red Bull has decided that Liam Lawson replaces Daniel Ricciardo in his subsidiary team, with a view to the young New Zealander being the replacement for Sergio Pérez for next season, as indicated by the Red Bull leaders themselves.
Lawson’s experience is barely limited to five races as an injury substitute in 2023 plus the six he will compete in this finale of 2024, but still Red Bull is already considering him for its first team, without even a full year in Formula 1. It is not an exception, it is a general trend caused by how easy the current cars are.
Formula 1 could have up to six rookies in 2025 because the teams see that everyone performs
When Lawson got into Ricciardo’s car last year due to the Australian’s injury, the young New Zealander’s results were surprising. From the beginning he was in the middle of the table, scoring points on a very difficult circuit like Singaporeand all this with a car that was not one of the best.
Many thought that Red Bull had discovered a genius in Lawson, but this 2024 seems to indicate that the shots are going the other way. When Carlos Sainz fell ill with appendicitis, Ferrari turned to Oliver Bearmanan 18-year-old Englishman from his youth team with no experience in Formula 1 who, surprisingly, achieved a good seventh place in that race.
It was normal to believe that it was because he was driving a Ferrari, a superior car, which allowed him to comfortably score points even without experience in Formula 1 and without having done the Friday training sessions. But it is that Bearman had to race again in Bakuthis time at Haas, when Kevin Magnussen was banned. And again he scored points, in only his second race.
The third case is that of Franco Colapinto. It seemed that the Argentine was Williams’ last resort to get rid of Logan Sargeant, but in three races Colapinto has dazzled, scoring points on a difficult circuit like Baku and staying very close to doing so in Singapore as well. Three very significant cases.
Lawson, Bearman and Colapinto have several things in common. The most obvious, that they have all debuted in Formula 1 in the last year and have shone in very strange circumstances. The second, that none of them were standing out especially in Formula 2. They are the umpteenth proof that the ladder to Formula 1 is broken, but there is something else.
Looking ahead to next season, Bearman’s definitive promotion with Haas has already been confirmed, but they will also rise Jack Doohan with Alpine and Kimi Antonelli with Mercedestwo other drivers whose classification in hand are not killing it in Formula 2. That Lawson will be on the grid is certain, the question is with which team.
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) October 1, 2024
Gabriel Bortoleto, this yes, current leader of Formula 2, seems well positioned to keep the Audi that is free, and even Isack Hadjar or Colapinto himself would have options to find a place in the Red Bull teams if those from the energy drinks decide to retire Sergio Pérez.
That is, we could have up to six rookies in Formula 1 in 2025. A cleanup that would remove the Pérez, Magnussen, Valtteri Bottas o Ricciardonames that can only contribute experience to a Formula 1 that no longer needs it. Because doing well with these cars from day one has been empirically proven to be possible.
After fiascos like those of Mick Schumacher, Nyck de Vries or Logan Sargeant that led the teams to be cautious with rookies, it seems that Formula 1 is once again no place for old people.
Source: www.motorpasion.com
