F1 news LIVE: Red Bull latest as Liam Lawson replaces Sergio Perez

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A spot has opened up as a reserve at Mercedes after Mick Schumacher left the team following the 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi.

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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.

“I’m incredibly grateful for the past four years with Red Bull Racing and for the opportunity to race with such an amazing team,” Sergio Perez said in a statement about his departure.

“Driving for Red Bull has been an unforgettable experience, and I’ll always cherish the success we achieved together. We broke records, reached remarkable milestones and I’ve had the privilege of meeting so many incredible people along the way.

“A big thank you to every person in the team from management, engineers and mechanics, catering, hospitality, kitchen, marketing and communications, as well as everyone at Milton Keynes. I wish you all the best for the future.”

He also extended a thank you to teammate Max Verstappen, adding: “It’s also been an honour to race alongside Max as a teammate all these years and to share in our success.”

In the final part of his statement, Perez gave “a special thank you to the fans around the world, and especially to the Mexican fans for your unwavering support every day.

“We’ll meet again soon. And remember... never give up!”

For Sergio Perez it was only a matter of when rather than if Red Bull would let him go. The axe fell on Wednesday and today his replacement has been confirmed in the shape of Liam Lawson.

Perez joined the team in 2021, but this season came under increasing pressure as the Formula One campaign wore on – finishing a whopping 285 points behind his team-mate Max Verstappen as Red Bull surrendered their constructors’ championship title to McLaren.

Verstappen clinched his fourth consecutive drivers’ world title while Perez, 34, finished eighth in the standings, failing to finish in the top five in his final 18 races for the team.

Horner spoke to Sky Sports regarding Sergio Perez’s future, saying: “Checo has been a fantastic member of this team, it’s been a tough year for him, but he’s a great person and played a key role in 2021 drivers’ championship.

“We sat down and discussed it last week. He’s decided to take a bit of time out, take a sabbatical from Formula 1 essentially. He’ll still be involved with the brand and the team. But he’s stepping back from driving duties moving forward.

“We’re sad to see him leave the team. It’s time for him to spend time with his family and reflect on what he wants to do for the future.”

Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principal, stated on Wednesday that Sergio Perez would be taking a sabbatical in 2025 after four years with the team. As part of this morning’s announcement he labelled Liam Lawson as a “real racer.”

“I’m delighted to announce that Liam Lawson will join the Team in 2025,” Horner said.

“Liam’s performances over the course of his two stints with Racing Bulls have demonstrated that he’s not only capable of delivering strong results but that he’s also a real racer, not afraid to mix it with the best and come out on top.

“His arrival continues the team’s long history of promoting from within the Red Bull Junior Programme and he follows in the footsteps of championship and race-winning drivers such as Sebastian Vettel and of course, Max Verstappen.

“There’s no doubt that racing alongside Max, a four-time champion and undoubtedly one of the greatest drivers ever seen in F1, is a daunting task, but I’m sure Liam can rise to that challenge and deliver some outstanding results for us next year.”

“To be announced as a Red Bull Racing driver is a lifelong dream for me, this is something I’ve wanted and worked towards since I was eight years old,” Liam Lawson said after the announcement that he will be partnering Max Verstappen in 2025.

“It’s been an incredible journey so far. I want to say a massive thank you to the whole team at RB for their support, the last six races have played a huge part in my preparation for this next step.

“I also want to thank, Christian [Horner], Helmut [Marko] and the whole Red Bull family for believing in me and giving me this opportunity.

“I am super excited to work alongside Max and learn from a World Champion, I have no doubt I will learn from his expertise. I can’t wait to get going!”

On the decision to extend Perez’s contract over the summer, Horner said: “At the time he’d had four podiums in five races, it was a logical extension to remove speculation, of which there was already too much around the team,” explained the team principal.

“Every contract has performance clauses and criteria, it didn’t make any difference to this decision for Sergio to step away and take a sabbatical.”

On the constructor’s championship, he added: “In hindsight, McLaren did a great job. But at the end of the day, we won more races, we had more poles, we won four sprint races, more than any other team, and we won the drivers’ championship with two races to go.

“Unfortunately we had a 280-point deficit between our drivers, of course that became quite expensive in terms of the constructors’ championship.”

Red Bull Racing have confirmed that Liam Lawson will replace Sergio Perez for the 2025 season and partner Max Verstappen. The released a statement which reads:

“Oracle Red Bull Racing is pleased to announce that Liam Lawson will complete the Tema’s driver line-up for the 2025 FIA Formula One World Championship, moving across from Visa Cash App Racing Bulls to partner four-time World Champion Max Verstappen.

“New Zealand native Liam joined the Red Bull Junior Programme in 2019 and after multiple junior formula successes made his Formula One debut with Scuderia AlphaTauri at the 2023 Italian Grand Prix, in place of the injured Daniel Ricciardo. He scored his first championship points in just his second outing at the Singapore GP and completed five races in all for the team. After taking up his Reserve Driver role with both teams at the start of 2024, Liam returned to Grand Prix racing with Visa Cash App Racing Bulls with a points-scoring finish at this year’s United States Grand Prix. Now, after completing the season with VCARB the 22-year-old takes the next step in his career with a seat a Oracle Red Bull Racing.”

A reminder of the news yesterday that Mexican driver Sergio Perez has left Red Bull after reaching an agreement with the Formula One team to part ways with immediate effect, both announced on Wednesday.

Perez, who has won six Grands Prix across 14 seasons, joined the Milton Keynes outfit in 2021. He helped them claim the Constructors’ Championship title in 2022 and 2023 and was the runner-up in the Drivers’ Championship last year.

The 34-year-old signed a new deal with Red Bull until 2026 earlier this year, but his place as Max Verstappen’s teammate came under intense scrutiny.

He finished eighth in the Drivers’ Championship this season, 285 points behind Verstappen, who secured his fourth successive drivers’ title and won nine races, while Perez was the only driver from the top four teams without a win this year.