Steiner considers Perez's replacement: 'I can see him getting that seat'
Guenther Steiner would not be surprised if Sergio Perez is indeed sent off in the summer break by Red Bull Racing. The 59-year-old Italian Swiss driver sees a suitable successor in Liam Lawson.
Perez is under heavy pressure and he has been told by team boss Christian Horner that he really needs to improve in Hungary and Belgium if he wants to finish the season alongside Max Verstappen. Helmut Marko also confirmed that he wants to see improvement from his second driver in the next two races.
Steiner would go for Lawson
"I consider it very likely that - if he does not improve in the races before the summer break - we might see someone else in the car after the summer break," Steiner said in The Red Flags podcast. The departed former team boss at Haas F1 calls Liam Lawson the "obvious candidate". "He is ready. He did well last year ... I can just see Lawson getting that seat if Checo doesn't do well in the coming races."
Another option is to pass on either Yuki Tsunoda or Daniel Ricciardo from sister team Visa Cash App RB. The former does not seem to need to consider that anyway, despite already scoring more points than Ricciardo this season. The Australian is a favourite of Horner's and would therefore have a better chance, but his results have not exactly been anything to write home about yet. At the same time, choosing Lawson also carries risks. There is a chance he will have nothing to bring against Max Verstappen in the second half of the season, which could hurt his self-confidence.
Comparison with Ricciardo
Steiner compares Perez's situation to Ricciardo's at McLaren a few years ago. "I think the car is pretty good. Checo is struggling at the moment. How many times has he finished second this year? Very often at the start of the season, but he has a bit of the same thing now as Danny Ric [Ricciardo] had at McLaren with Lando [Norris]. He's just struggling to keep up, it's a similar situation."
Perez has been on the podium four times this season. He did so in the first five races of the season. There were second places for the routine driver in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Japan. In China, he crossed the finish line in third place. After 12 GPs, his gap to Verstappen in the world championship is already 137 points.
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So,I don't follow the junior series as much as most do,but what has Lawson actually achieved? Usually when I start hearing new names in F1 circles it rings a bell,but the only thing I can find is that he won 1 Toyota Racing Series championship not much else. Not saying it is the case here,but feel sometimes that a lot of drivers that get results in junior series do not make it to F1,just because of a lack of backing,either monetary wise or politics and then some who do,really shouldn't have made it to F1 in the first place ,Mazespin for instance. Having said that,I am sure he will bring more energy, motivation and likely skill then Perez.But that's not saying much, is it.
No logic at all in what Steiner says. Like absolutely zero. Let's say they would pick between TSU, RIC, LAW. What we have seen is Tsunoda being slightly quicker than Ricciardo, sometimes Ricciardo being quicker. But mostly Tsunoda. Lawson as a rookie driving 5 races against Tsunoda, did pretty ok. But he was clearly slower than Tsunoda, like a rookie should be. No surprises there. So why would RedBull put the slowest driver in to the main team? If Lawson will join, then AlphaTauri and AlphaTauri only. If there is ever a chance for him to become a RedBull main team driver, he has to beat whoever drives against him in AlphaTauri. I'm surprised Steiner with F1 experience, talks such nonsense.
I think Hulk would have been the best option if he didn’t already sign for Audi. Now I believe Ricciardo would be the best pick as Perez’ replacement. Ricciardo likes a strong frontend, just like Max. So he should be able to adjust quite quickly and contribute to setting up the car. Which seems to be Red Bulls main issue right now, finding the best setups.
"I'm surprised Steiner with F1 experience, talks such nonsense." Isn't that what he always does? Guy's known for talking a roll of garbage. I guess he's trying to stay relevant
Remember he is the guy who hired Mezapin and Schumacher to drive for the team at the same time? Two rookies who hasn't shown that fantastic results in their junior category. It's different if he had, say, Russell and Lando in their cars as rookies, as they had the results to show their talents.
Steiner's experience in F1 was that of the class clown,good for a laugh or two,but not much else.
I agree that it doesn't make sense to put Danny Ricc in the seat after what happened at McLaren. I don't see Yuki in that seat any time soon. It makes more sense to put Lawson in - however, this move is risky. He may shine (based on last year's performance) , or he may not. If Red Bull wants the best available driver, then it's a no-brainer to go for Carlos. How much is Red Bull willing to trade points in the standings vs. peace among drivers' fathers is the the main dilemma.
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