Horner defends Lawson's disappointing qualifying: 'Not representative'
F1 News
Christian Horner has defended Liam Lawson after his first qualifying session in a Red Bull Racing car saw him fail to make it out of Q1. The Red Bull team principal explains that given the conditions, it is not surprising that Lawson struggled during qualifying in Melbourne, and that his performance today is not representative of what the New Zealander is capable of.
"It's unfortunate," Horner acknowledged to Viaplay when asked about Lawson's first qualifying session of the 2025 season. "I mean, he missed the whole of FP3 because of a technical issue, and then you are immediately on the back foot."
It was a difficult Saturday in Australia for the brand-new Red Bull driver, but while teammate Max Verstappen qualified in third place behind the two McLarens, the New Zealander got no further than the 18th starting position.
Horner understands Lawson's problems
"He has never raced here before," continued the Briton."He’s the only driver on the grid not to have been here before, so it was a lot to ask from him in Q3. His first one was fine, and then unfortunately, mistakes on the second and third run meant he just missed out today. But that’s not representative of what he’s capable of."
Speaking to F1TV, Horner also added: "His first run was pretty decent considering the lack of mileage, but then, unfortunately, a lock-up on the second run, a mistake on the third run, the pressure’s just building and building at that point. You can’t judge him on today’s performance, but, hopefully, he can have a reasonable run tomorrow."
This article was created in collaboration with Kim Hoefnagel
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels!