Liam Lawson has firmly rejected Christian Horner's suggestion that he was moved back to Racing Bulls due to a lack of confidence.
The 23-year-old New Zealander has disputed the Red Bull team principal's explanation for the unexpected team change.
Horner had claimed the switch was part of the team's "duty of care" towards Lawson following his brief two-race stint alongside Max Verstappen at the start of the F1 season.
Horner had partly justified the decision to replace Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda as being in the young driver's best interest.
Liam Lawson firmly rejected Christian Horner's reason to drop him
PA
The 51-year-old Red Bull boss suggested Lawson was struggling with confidence issues during his brief stint at the Milton Keynes-based team.
This explanation has clearly struck a nerve with Lawson, who appeared defiant when addressing the media upon his return to Racing Bulls.
The abrupt decision caught both Lawson and the wider F1 paddock by surprise.
"I think confidence-wise it doesn't change a lot," Lawson told media.
"We all have enough self-belief to be here and to make it to Formula 1. If you don't have that self-belief, it makes it very difficult."
The driver maintained that his confidence remains intact despite the team switch.
"It doesn't really change how I feel about myself," he added, directly contradicting Horner's assessment of the situation.
Lawson's comments suggest the decision was not related to any psychological struggles as implied by the Red Bull leadership.
Lawson expressed disappointment at not being able to continue with the main Red Bull team.
"Obviously, the best opportunity I had felt like it was with Red Bull Racing. That's what we're all working towards," he explained.
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Liam Lawson was brutally axed by Red Bull on ThursdayGETTYThe driver revealed this had been his goal since joining Red Bull's development programme as a teenager.
"That's what I was working towards since joining the junior programme as a 16-year-old. So obviously, I would have liked to make that opportunity work and that's in my best interest."
Despite his disappointment, Lawson acknowledged that the final decision rested with the team leadership.
"Christian [Horner] and the team will have their opinions on what's best, and that's up to them to decide," he conceded.
