Liam Lawson handed staggering positive verdict ahead of Racing Bulls return

Liam Lawson has been handed comprehensive support ahead of his second full-time season in Formula 1.

The New Zealand driver endured a rollercoaster campaign in 2025, prestigiously starting out at Red Bull as Max Verstappen's new team-mate after Sergio Perez was released, but was only given two grands prix before being demoted to Racing Bulls.

It was still a tricky campaign for Lawson, especially as it was not until his sixth grand prix with the team that he finally broke his points duck for the season, finishing eighth in Monaco.

A further six points-scoring finishes followed, and it was touch and go until very late in the season as to whether he would be retained.

In between the season-ending Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix, it was finally confirmed that Lawson had been handed a new contract for 2026 with Racing Bulls.

In a RacingNews365 poll, we asked whether that contract was deserved, and Lawson was worthy of his place on the 2026 grid.

An overwhelming 91.36% of voters agreed that Lawson should be in F1 this year. He will be partnered by rookie Arvid Lindblad.

Just 5.05% said that Lawson should have been replaced by Yuki Tsunoda. The Japanese driver replaced Lawson at Red Bull, but struggled for the remainder of the year in partnering with Verstappen. He will be Red Bull's reserve driver this season.

The concluding 3.59% said that Racing Bulls should have opted for another driver. We did ask for comments as to who, if this option was selected, but unfortunately, no suggestions were made.

Please do comment when requested, in our polls, as you will get a mention in the result-based follow-up article.