Racing Bulls pinpoint biggest hurdle for Liam Lawson to regain "spring in step"

Racing Bulls team boss Alan Permane believes Liam Lawson has a “sprint back in his step”after a bruising two-race stint at Red Bull at the start of the 2025 Formula 1 season.

While Lawson initially struggled to match his teammate Isack Hadjar after being shuffled back to Racing Bulls in Japan, he has picked up the pace in recent races and established himself as a dependable midfield driver.

Not only has he accumulated double the points of Yuki Tsunoda, the driver who replaced him at Red Bull, but he is also now just two points shy of Hadjar’s tally of 22.

His improved form has also helped Racing Bulls remain in the hunt for sixth place in the constructors’ championship, with just seven points separating the Faenza squad and its closest rivals Sauber and Aston Martin.

Permane believes the demotion from Red Bull did take a knock on Lawson’s confidence, despite the 23-year-old insisting otherwise, but feels he has now rediscovered his mojo in F1.

“He's done a great job, honestly,” said the Briton, who was promoted to the top job at Racing Bulls last month.

“Two races at Red Bull, obviously, were very tough for him. He won't thank me for saying this, but he definitely was a bit downbeat. He didn't have a spring in his step, and we've done what we can to help him there.

“To jump in our car straight away without having tested it was, of course, not easy. He's up against Isack who has been outstanding this year. The first race for him was Japan and Isack was absolutely flying there.

“So, it's a tough introduction for him, but we've made some changes.

“He's worked hard. Him and his engineering team have worked really, really hard.”

Permane believes recent updates introduced by Racing Bulls have also played a big role in boosting Lawson’s form.

The biggest leap came in Austria, where Lawson saved the face for the energy drinks giant with a sublime drive to sixth place after Max Verstappen was taken out on the first lap in a multi-car accident.

“We had a bit of a breakthrough in Austria,” Permane revealed. “We had a new front suspension for him, which they developed through the simulator, and he really liked it, was really enthusiastic about it, and it worked there.

“We saw last week in Spa again, he's performing [well]. You could see after that race. Monaco was a decent race for him, but Austria, he had a spring back in his step.”