The Lawson sacking case is not only scary because, in fact, it is unprecedented even in the grim world of Formula 1, that someone is fired after two races. It is much more for the underlying message.
New Zealand is anything but a motorsport nation, and Liam Lawson is not a super talent at all. There is no point in arguing about this, because they are FACTS. We have already seen real examples of both, and they do not look at all like the (former) Red Bull Racing driver and his origin. Helmut Marko and Christian Horner knew this well and have closely observed how Tsunoda, who has now been put in his place, surpasses Lawson in every single indicator. And not only him, but also all his suffering teammates at Racing Bulls. He takes every request, wish, sigh with attention. He changes as a driver, changes as a person, subjects everything to what is necessary to fulfill. However, it is not at all clear that he will be the one to receive the Red Bull seat...
Anyway, don't get me wrong, I don't think Tsunoda is an RBR level driver at all, someone who is expected to win races, to actively take part in the fight for the constructors' championship. But he is certainly better suited to this task than Lawson. Only there is that damned question of money. They don't even leave the illusion that anything else matters when choosing a driver. Or, even sadder: they don't even leave the illusion THAT ANYTHING ELSE MATTERS.
Because if it mattered (in a company with such opportunities as Red Bull, I do not understand this mentality at all), they would certainly take and put Fernando Alonso, who has been waiting for a much better fate for years, next to Max Verstappen, a driver who is willing to do anything for success, even "die" for it. A driver with whom the team could position itself in a completely different dimension in the history of the sport and from an economic point of view. If instead of chasing business and mega-extra profits, they respected the sporting value of Formula 1 a little, they would say: "We, Red Bull Racing, give the fans what they have always wanted. Fuck it, let it be Rock'n'Roll!" Because they can.
True, they can also rapidly destroy young people who deserve a better fate, producing new and new Liam Lawsons every season. It is sad that they exercise this right.
Photo: Planet F1
