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Lawson, a victim of online abuse after Red Bull axed Perez
- Ludo van Denderen
With the announcement that Liam Lawson will be Max Verstappen's team-mate at Red Bull Racing in 2025, New Zealanders will be excited to have a driver in a top seat on the grid. In Latin America and Japan, however, fans aren't exactly happy, since Lawson is stepping in for ousted Sergio Perez and Yuki Tsunoda was passed up on a Red Bull promotion once again. So now Lawson has become a victim of online abuse, being targeted by fans on social media.
Anyone scrolling through Red Bull Racing and Liam Lawson's social media channels will see hundreds of negative comments - full of swearing, with a few even hoping Lawson will crash soon (or worse). It's no coincidence that the heaviest insults and curses come from people writing in Spanish, which probably indicates that they are fans of Sergio Perez - the Mexican sidelined by Red Bull.
Meta and X do not intervene:
Meta and X, who own the different social media platforms, are also failing here. Given the 'freedom of speech' that X owner Elon Musk stands for these days, the chances of intervention on his platform especially seem slim.
If the online activities are a harbinger for the rest of the season, races that traditionally have a lot of Mexican fans in the stands may be heated - of course, the Mexican Grand Prix is the most prominent. It could be a hot year for Red Bull Racing and Liam Lawson at times.
This article was written in collaboration with Toby Nixon
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