Red Bull chose experience for Dutch Grand Prix replacement
Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane has explained why Arvid Lindblad was overlooked when Red Bull needed a substitute driver for the Dutch Grand Prix.
The Milton Keynes-based team was forced to make a change after Isack Hadjar suffered an injury during the summer break. Rather than promote Lindblad, Hadjar’s Racing Bulls team-mate, Red Bull recalled Liam Lawson. Yuki Tsunoda was then brought into Racing Bulls as Lawson’s replacement, a reshuffle detailed in Yuki Tsunoda’s return to Racing Bulls for the Dutch Grand Prix.
The decision gave Lawson another opportunity with Red Bull after he was dropped by the team last year following a disappointing opening two rounds. It also made him the first driver in Red Bull’s history to receive a second chance with the senior team.
Permane: Lawson was the pragmatic choice
Asked by Sky F1 whether Lindblad had been considered, Permane confirmed that he had been an option. However, the Racing Bulls principal said Red Bull ultimately made the logical decision by selecting the more experienced candidate already within its driver pool.
“Yes, I think so,” Permane said when asked if promoting Lindblad had been considered. “The pragmatic thing is to take Liam. Liam is a Red Bull driver. He just has his nose in front of Arvid this year.”
Permane added that choosing experience was the correct approach for Red Bull, describing it as a normal practice for a team to call up one of its own drivers, even when that driver is competing for another team.
He pointed to Lewis Hamilton’s absence due to COVID in Bahrain as a previous example, when George Russell was taken from Williams to fill the vacant seat.
Limited influence over the decision
Permane also played down his own influence over the process, saying the decision had been discussed but that neither he nor Lawson had a major say in the outcome.
“What Red Bull has done, we discussed it – I wouldn’t say I had a huge amount of influence on it,” he said. “It’s definitely the right thing to do, honestly, and Arvid is fine about it. He completely gets it, and I think he’s happy where he is.”
The comments underline the priority behind Red Bull’s choice: with a seat suddenly available, the team favoured Lawson’s existing Red Bull status and greater experience over a first promotion for Lindblad.
