Liam Lawson fell victim to Red Bull’s caution as Daniel Ricciardo dealt a blow to his F1 dream.

A strong driver would have been left out in the cold by Red Bull’s decision regarding the 2024 F1 race seats at AlphaTauri, and impressive debutant Lawson is the one who takes the hit.

Even though Liam Lawson’s Formula 1 audition was undoubtedly the best possible, it still wasn’t good enough.

When Daniel Ricciardo crashed at Zandvoort and fractured a bone in his left hand, the New Zealander was quickly called into action.
He hasn’t made a mistake since, attracting attention all over the paddock despite competing for underdogs AlphaTauri.

His first two races for the team that was rooted to the bottom of the constructors’ championship saw him finish 13th and 11th, respectively. But it was Lawson’s ninth-place finish at the Singapore Grand Prix, in only his third F1 start, that made him officially declare his candidacy for a full-time race seat in 2024.

It meant that Red Bull had three drivers who had compelling arguments for a 2024 berth and only two seats to fill.
Some have called it a “nice problem” for the team to have, but is it really so nice to be left with a choice that, no matter which way is taken, is certain to put the career of a deserving driver in Formula One in jeopardy?

In the end, Lawson is the one still up for consideration even though he was given little time to prepare for the audition.
Tsunoda received another due to his strong start to the current campaign, while Ricciardo was given the opportunity to pursue his “dream” return to Red Bull Racing, which he is aiming for in 2025.

The decision Red Bull made was motivated by the experience of the two drivers they chose, especially Daniel Ricciardo.
Currently going through a significant rebranding process, AlphaTauri will have a new name after this season, and they will also be making significant operational changes behind the scenes.

They have gone with the “safe” route by retaining Tsunoda for a fourth season with the team and adding Ricciardo’s extensive F1 background. That is not criticism; safe and reliable is exactly what Red Bull’s sister team needs to stop the decay and start rising again in the standings in the coming years.

Although Lawson has done everything required of him since stepping up to fill in for Ricciardo while he was sidelined due to injury, it still feels harsh.
Given that AlphaTauri already had a negative experience with a rookie F1 driver in the previous 12 months, it’s possible that he is the unfortunate victim of circumstance.

After making a strong debut at Monza in 2022 when Alex Albon fell ill with appendicitis, Nyck de Vries earned the seat next to Tsunoda.
However, he was unable to duplicate the success he had in that one-off appearance, and after 10 fruitless races, he was ushered out the door and replaced by Ricciardo.

The decision-makers will have taken that into consideration. Lawson has shown that he is more than just a one-off, but Red Bull and AlphaTauri’s worry that he might repeat the same error in a short period of time is not irrational.

Now that there is only one open seat for 2024, Williams will undoubtedly give Lawson’s availability some thought. But if they decide to stick with Logan Sargeant, the New Zealander has, at the very least, done enough in his brief stint this season to ensure that he will be among the top candidates for a drive by the time the next F1 silly season rolls around.