Liam Lawson has spoken out amid fears that his Formula 1 career could be 'over' following a difficult weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix.
George Russell claimed just his second race victory of the season at the Marina Bay Circuit, finishing ahead of Max Verstappen. The Dutchman continued to close the gap in the Drivers Championship to his title rivals Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
Although Verstappen remains 63 points behind Piastri, there are still six race weekends left for him to reduce the deficit and mount a late challenge. But one driver who endured a tougher weekend was New Zealander Liam Lawson.
The 23-year-old has yet to sign a contract for 2026 that will commit him to either the Racing Bulls or Red Bull team. Despite an impressive display at the previous round in Azerbaijan, where he finished fifth, Lawson told reporters ahead of the Singapore GP that he was still waiting to receive a call from Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko.
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Unfortunately, his weekend performance is unlikely to have strengthened his case. Lawson crashed in both the second and third practice sessions, before qualifying in 14th.
He was unable to make much progress in the race and eventually came home in a disappointing 15th.
Reflecting on the weekend, Lawson shared his thoughts on Instagram.
He wrote:" A weekend that I’ll learn from. Thank you to the team for all the extra effort over the weekend to get me on track, and to all the kiwis that were out there this weekend waving the flag."
There remains real uncertainty within Red Bull about what the driver line-ups will look like across both their senior and junior teams in 2026.
Four-time world champion Verstappen has re-committed to the team, but is currently the only driver who appears certain to retain his seat.
Yuki Tsunoda is expected to lose the second Red Bull Seat, following another disappointing weekend in Singapore, where he finished 12th.
Rookie Isack Hadjar has been tipped as a possible replacement after an impressive season, with his podium at the Dutch Grand Prix standing out as a particular highlight.
However, the Racing Bulls driver line-up remains the subject of speculation, with several young prospects being linked to the seat.
Red Bull have successfully applied for a super license for the junior Arvid Lindblad, who is currently racing in F2.
Meanwhile, Alex Dunne is also available, after the youngster left McLaren's development programme last week.
Topics: Liam Lawson, Formula 1, Motorsport, Red Bull Racing
James Taylor