Liam Lawson's position at Red Bull appears increasingly precarious just two races into the 2025 Formula 1 season with team principal pondering axing the New Zealander already.
The 23-year-old has endured a disastrous start to his Red Bull career, failing to score a single point.
Lawson qualified 18th at the season opener in Melbourne before crashing out of the race.
In China, his struggles continued as he qualified last for both the sprint and grand prix.
Christian Horner could ditch Liam Lawson after just two races
GettyRed Bull are now reportedly considering replacing Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda for the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix.
Team advisor Helmut Marko claimed a meeting had been scheduled for next week to discuss the situation.
Horner has not ruled out an early-season swap, though he stated "nothing specific" had been set up.
Tsunoda, when asked about a potential move, responded enthusiastically: "Yeah, 100 per cent. The car is faster, I'm sure."
Red Bull initially chose Lawson over the more experienced Tsunoda because they believed he had "mental toughness" the Japanese driver lacked.
Following Lawson's qualifying struggles in China, the team made "significant" changes to his car setup.
Horner explained: "Liam is obviously, confidence-wise, struggling with the car at the moment, which is why we made some significant changes to see if we could find a more confidence-inspiring setup for him."
Lawson has firmly rejected Tsunoda's comments, saying: "He can say whatever he wants. I've raced him for years, raced him in the junior categories and beat him."
The Kiwi driver pointed to their shared history: "In F3 and I beat him. In Euro Formula, I was team-mates with him in New Zealand, and I beat him there. He's had his time. Now it's my time."
Lawson is the latest in a line of drivers who have struggled alongside Verstappen at Red Bull.
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Liam Lawson could be replaced by Red Bull early in the season
Sergio Perez, Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly all faced similar difficulties before him.
Horner pointed out that the car's handling isn't solely to blame, noting: "Let's remember that Checo finished second in the world championship two years ago."
"The car is difficult to drive, and Max is able to adjust to that."
The Red Bull car itself appears to be a significant part of the problem, with handling issues affecting both drivers.
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Liam Lawson's Red Bull car underwent significant changes before the Chinese Grand Prix
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The RB21 is described as "nervous on corner entry, has mid-corner understeer and is snappy on exits."
Even Verstappen is struggling, with reports suggesting he believes the car may be the slowest of the top four teams.
"The team don't seem to know how to fix it," according to F1 correspondent Andrew Benson.
If Red Bull drop Lawson after just two races, serious questions will be asked of their management approach.
