Marko suggests that there will be news about Lawson on Thursday.

      In a troubling development for Liam Lawson, Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko has revealed that an announcement regarding the New Zealander’s immediate future is forthcoming on Thursday. Reports suggest that the 23-year-old Lawson is already aware of his fate, which was allegedly determined by the energy drink's executives along with team management during discussions in Dubai on Tuesday. When questioned for confirmation, Marko told the Osterreich newspaper on Wednesday to "please be patient until tomorrow."

      Expected to replace Lawson for the races starting in Suzuka is Yuki Tsunoda, with Lawson returning to Racing Bulls. Tsunoda remarked as he departed Shanghai last Sunday that he was prepared to confront the "monster" that is Max Verstappen. However, many insiders do not anticipate the Japanese driver to perform significantly better than Lawson, citing the extreme handling characteristics of the car that only the four-time world champion Verstappen can manage. Yet, even Verstappen has not secured a victory in the RB21 so far in 2025, leading Marko to worry about the possibility of losing him to a competitor.

      "Max wants to win," the 81-year-old Austrian stated. "And he wants to feel like he’s doing everything possible to achieve that. If he doesn’t have that feeling, there’s a risk he’ll take a different approach." Should Verstappen ultimately depart, Red Bull might face challenges in finding a top-tier driver to replace him, particularly given Lawson's poor performance all weekend in Shanghai.

      Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher told Sky Deutschland that "Red Bull would have already descended into mediocrity without Max." He hinted that team principal Christian Horner might find it difficult to retain his job. "Horner is already controversial," Schumacher observed. "He has failed to maintain the winning formula at Red Bull due to his personal issues, which ultimately led to the departure of Adrian Newey and other key figures. Now he’s facing the consequences. I struggle to envision how Red Bull will recover from this slump. Pierre Wache has had a year to address the situation post-Newey's departure, but it seems to have worsened over the winter."

      He added, "I sense something is about to happen soon. I hear that Jos Verstappen is furious." De Telegraaf newspaper claims Verstappen disagrees with the decision to let Lawson go, while former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos believes his fellow Dutchman is already contemplating leaving the team. "I think Max is a bit too relaxed about the whole situation," he commented to Ziggo Sport. "I suspect Max is quietly saying goodbye to the team."