Horner backs Verstappen over Lawson claim

Lawson's start to life at Red Bull failed to improve on his crash at the Australian Grand Prix as he again failed to reach the second segment of qualifying or sprint qualifying, setting the slowest time in both sessions.

The New Zealander then failed to advance through the field, finishing 15th behind Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar in the race before he was promoted to 12th by virtue of three disqualifications and only finishing ahead of Yuki Tsunoda after a front wing failure cost the Japanese driver an extra pitstop.

Horner: "We've got a duty to look after him"

Speculation is mounting over Lawson's future already but speaking to media including GPBlog, Horner said: "I think he's a young guy. We've got a duty to look after him and we're going to do the best that we can to support him.

"Liam's still very capable, we know that. We are just not seeing it for whatever reason, we're not seeing him able to deliver that at the moment."

Verstappen has questioned the performance of the Red Bull across the past two years with former team-mate Sergio Perez also struggling in the second car and, with Lawson failing to improve on the Mexican's problems, the four-time champion suggested his new partner would gain better results in the Racing Bulls machinery.

Agreeing with the Dutchman, Horner explained: "I think the Racing Bulls car is a more settled car.

"It probably is a little more stable on entry, it probably has a bit more understeer in that car, and therefore is easier to adapt to. But you can see the difference in pace in the cars on a longer stint today.

"I think in terms of finding the limit in a car that has an inherent understanding, he's always going to find it easier than finding the limit in a car that is a little more edgy."

This article was written in collaboration with Kimberley Hoefnagel.