Axed Red Bull F1 star reveals talks over shock RETURN

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F1 News & Gossip

Axed Red Bull star reveals talks over shock F1 RETURN

It's been all-change at Red Bull this winter

Chris Deeley

Tuesday 25 February 2025 20:55

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An axed Red Bull driver has revealed that he was offered the chance to return to the team in shock fashion.

The team have undergone a significant transformation since this time last year, with Daniel Ricciardo and Sergio Perez out at Racing Bulls and Red Bull respectively, replaced by Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson.

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Both popular veterans have been the subject of a number of off-season rumours about their next teams - if they're ever offered a way back onto the grid - while Hadjar and Lawson will be under immense scrutiny.

Yuki Tsunoda also has a lot to prove at Racing Bulls this year, having been passed over for the Red Bull seat alongside Max Verstappen in favour of Lawson, who has fewer than a dozen F1 starts under his belt.

Isack Hadjar will debut for Racing Bulls next month

Liam Lawson has been promoted quickly to be Max Verstappen's team-mate

Give a nod to Red Bull's motorsport history with the retro New Era seasonal heritage 9TWENTY cap, available to purchase here on Fanatics.

Who was offered an F1 return by Red Bull?

The team have shown a willingness in the past to bring axed drivers back after some time away, as Sebastien Buemi told e-formel.de recently.

Buemi, who left the then-Toro Rosso team back in 2011 but remained a Red Bull reserve driver for a decade after, said: "We had a conversation with Christian Horner and Dr. Marko in 2018. But that didn't make sense for me because I had good contracts in Formula E and with Toyota.

"I would have had the chance to drive for Toro Rosso again. But for me, it was better to continue on my path than to return to Formula 1."

He went on to praise the team for their work with him over the years, although he admitted that his axing was hard to take.

"I think Red Bull and Dr Marko have done a lot for me. I am very grateful for that. Of course, I did not really understand the decision at the time - I would have loved to drive the Red Bull car. But it was not my decision and I had to deal with it.

"That was very difficult at the time. You have done everything your whole life to drive in Formula 1. These decisions are not easy to understand, but I stayed with Red Bull as a reserve driver at the time. You just have to accept that and immediately think about your future again."