By David G. Firestone
So the Liam Lawson experiment at Red Bull Racing is officially over. Lawson started the first two races, but was replaced by Yuki Tsunoda starting at Japan. Why the sudden shift? Well, let’s look at an analysis by Lawrence Barretto on Formula1.com:
“The New Zealander had a low-key pre-season test in Bahrain – and then endured a miserable debut weekend in Australia, qualifying 18th and then crashing in the race. Sources say one senior member of the team raised the prospect of demoting him after that weekend.
Then in China, he became the first Red Bull driver in their 20-year history to qualify last, when he ended up 20th in Sprint Qualifying and he did so again for the Grand Prix. While he was classified 12th – helped in part by three disqualifications – Red Bull called an internal meeting for after the race weekend to discuss his future.
Sources say the shareholders, plus Team Principal Christian Horner and Red Bull Motorsport Adviser Helmut Marko, agreed unanimously that Lawson should go back to Racing Bulls with immediate effect, ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, with Tsunoda stepping up to replace him.
This was after they had looked at Lawson’s data from testing and the opening two races and concluded that he wasn’t performing to a high enough level, even if they conceded that it was a very difficult car to drive.
It’s believed the team accepted that Lawson had also lost his confidence after conceding he couldn’t understand why he wasn’t able to get pace out of the car.”
To some, this seems to be unfair to Lawson. To those, I say…tough shit! This isn’t karting, this isn’t F3, or F2, THIS IS F1!!! There are a lot of hungry drivers, but only a few seats at the top table. If you get a spot, but can’t keep it, someone else will step up and claim it. It’s no different than NASCAR, IndyCar, the NFL, the NBA, and so on. Those who can’t keep up get replaced.
Liam Lawson is another motorsports hype job. He is a driver who impressed in the lower ranks, and impressed during testing. But the moment he got the chance in the major leagues, he choked. Red Bull Racing looked over their data, saw that he was all hype, and replaced him. The needs of the team matter more than the needs of the individual driver. If this were a lower level F1 team, maybe they would have kept him, but not Red Bull Racing.
I’m not like these other morons who think he should have gotten another shot, or more time. He was given a shot in the major leagues, and choked. If you get a shot at being a Formula 1 driver, whatever you did in the minor leagues isn’t relevant anymore. You could be the greatest F3 or F2 driver, but if you suck in F1, that’s all anyone is going to remember. Again, it’s no different than NASCAR, IndyCar, the NFL, the NBA, and so on. Those who can’t keep up get replaced. Liam Lawson is another one of those guys.
Speaking of releases, let’s talk AEW. Tony Khan rarely releases talent, but what he loves to do is ghost talent until their contract ends. We’ve seen this quite a bit. But the latest victim of the Tony Khan ghosting is Saraya. Saraya, AKA Paige, joined AEW in 2022. She had wrestled in WWE both NXT and the Main Roster from 2011-2018, when a neck injury should have ended her in-ring career. Never the less, she was an on-air talent for WWE until her contract ended in 2022.
With WWE solidly behind her, even making a movie about her life, during her time with WWE, she caused some controversies. One such controversy was the leaking of a sex tape between herself, Brad Maddox, and Xavier Woods. There were a number of other incidents as well. She was getting paid a lot, but she wasn’t that valuable to WWE during that time. So, in 2022, WWE and Saraya parted ways and she signed with AEW.
In a move than can only be described as ungrateful, upon arrival in AEW, one of her first moves was to talk shit about WWE and how much better AEW is. This is the same WWE that paid her more than she was ever going to be worth to the company, while at the same time, causing a lot of bad PR for WWE. Her in-ring work was mediocre, and she really wasn’t that much of a stand out, especially when compared to the other ex-WWE talent AEW signed.
After her release, she claimed that she wanted to return to WWE and reclaim the Paige character. To that, I say, HELL NO! After all the bullshit she put WWE through in her career, all the money they paid her, and even financing a biographical movie on her life, I wouldn’t blame WWE for not resigning her. You look at talent like Brock Lesnar, Matt Riddle, and even Vince McMahon, who were more valuable to the company than Saraya ever was, and are now persona non grata, why should she get another chance? Hell, WWE released Carmella, and she has been more valuable since 2022 than Saraya was.
Here’s the bottom line. I do not think WWE should resign Saraya given everything I’ve said up to this point. I do not think she is a good fit for the current women’s division. I do not think that she would be able to wrestle, or if she would be medically cleared. What I do think is that the indie scene is a better fit for her. She went out of her way to cause problems and burn bridges in WWE, and WWE does not need her anymore.
I’ve said this before, every career has an expiration date, and sometimes that date comes sooner than you want it to be. In many instances, this expiration date is sped up because you are your own worst enemy. Matt Riddle, Brock Lesnar, and Enzo Amore were popular merch movers, and made WWE millions of dollars, yet WWE had no reservation distancing themselves from them. Saraya is no different. She isn’t worth much to WWE in 2025, and they both know it. I wish her well in the indipendent scene.
Sources Cited:
The Driver Suit Blog 