The 2026 Formula One season may only be five races old, but one driver is already “under pressure” to save his job heading into this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.
The current campaign couldn’t have gone any better for Mercedes, who have won every race to date this season. Many other teams, however, are struggling for pace amid the raft of technical changes that have been introduced for 2026.
As a result of the ever-changing nature of the sport, teams are consistently evaluating their approaches, including who is driving their cars.
F1 Driver Faces Uncertain Future Despite Promising Start to 2026 Season
Even those who have shown signs of improvement seemingly aren’t exempt from the chopping block as a new report suggests that an F1 team could be preparing to cut ties with a driver who has scored points in three of this year’s five races.
New Zealand’s Liam Lawson is no stranger to having to battle for his spot on the F1 grid, having been demoted from Red Bull to sister team Racing Bulls after just two races of the 2025 campaign.
The 24-year-old was then forced to fend off competition from Yuki Tsunoda to retain his seat in 2026. To his credit, Lawson has made a creditable start to the new campaign, racking up a total of 16 points.
To put that number into perspective, only Max Verstappen (43) has more points this season within the Red Bull family. Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate, Isack Hadjar, sits on 14 points, with Lawson’s Racing Bulls colleague Arvid Lindblad having picked up just five points.
What Under Pressure F1 Driver Must Do To Save His Job
However, despite being impressed by the Kiwi’s start to the campaign, Racing Bulls could ruthlessly axe him if his results drop off. They already have his replacement in mind.
The Red Bull second string are increasingly keen to hand an opportunity to teenage F2 prospect Nikola Tsolov and a recent report from SoyMotor suggests that Lawson could be the man to make way for the talented Bulgarian.
The report notes that Tsolov is “knocking on the door” for a seat at Racing Bulls next season and believes that Lawson will find himself out of a job if he doesn’t continue to outperform his current teammate Lindblad.
Racing Bulls only handed Lawson a one-year deal in December, meaning that it won’t cost them anything to move on from him at the end of the season. Sources suggest that he will need to maintain a “clear advantage” over Lindblad in the Drivers’ Championship standings in order to earn a fresh contract and retain his seat.
That means that every race counts for Lawson, starting in Monaco this weekend.