Red Bull F1 star's promotion DELAYED until 2026 after shock team decision

Photo: © IMAGO

Red Bull

Red Bull star's promotion DELAYED until 2026 after shock team decision

One Red Bull star will have to wait for their promotion

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Saturday 18 January 2025 08:57

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A Red Bull star’s promotion has been delayed until 2026, after a shock decision from the Formula 1 team.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit announced that Sergio Perez would be leaving the team at the end of last year, despite the Mexican driver’s contract expiring in 2026.

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Red Bull opted to replace Perez with Liam Lawson, who only made his return to F1 in September 2024 and competed in a total of 11 races with VCARB across 2023 and 2024.

As Lawson enters the team in 2025, Red Bull will also undergo major personnel changes, with Adrian Newey and Jonathan Wheatley both departing to rival teams later in the year.

Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson will race for Red Bull in 2025

Adrian Newey and Jonathan Wheatley will both leave Red Bull

Hannah Schmitz Red Bull promotion delayed

Alongside Newey and Wheatley, Red Bull’s strategy chief Will Courtenay will also leave Red Bull as he switches to McLaren to become their sporting director.

However, Courtenay’s arrival at the Woking outfit has been delayed, after he was unable to negotiate an early release from his contract, which expires in 2026.

Both Newey and Wheatley managed to negotiate a period of gardening leave before their arrival at Aston Martin and Sauber this year, but it appears Courtenay will remain with Red Bull throughout 2025, it has been confirmed to Autosport.com.

Hannah Schmitz is expected to replace Will Courtenay as strategy chief

Courtenay's delay not only impacts McLaren, but also strategy engineer Hannah Schmitz who, according to team principal Christian Horner, will undertake the role of strategy chief when the current incumbent leaves to join their rival team.

"He [Courtenay] has been here for 20 years," Horner told Autosport last year.

"We talked about other roles within the group. He was offered a bigger role on a very high salary from McLaren, and at that point you have got to say: 'Good luck. Go for it.'

"But at the same time, it gives an opportunity for Hannah Schmitz to move up, which, if she hadn't had that opportunity, she'd have been a prime target for somebody."

Red Bull Formula 1 Sergio Perez Adrian Newey Liam Lawson Jonathan Wheatley