The paddock still files them under Red Bull’s junior programme. One of them has 55 grand prix starts behind him.

Lawson, 24, finished seventh at Interlagos last Sunday after a five-second penalty for Charles Leclerc moved him up from eighth, and he sits ninth in the drivers’ championship. Yet Racing Bulls remains the only team on the 2027 grid without a confirmed line-up.

Mekies hands the call to Faenza

Red Bull Racing team principal Laurent Mekies, who ran Racing Bulls himself until his mid-2025 promotion to the senior team, has been clear that the decision does not sit with him.

“When good drivers develop at Racing Bulls, we have the opportunity to promote them to Red Bull Racing. We did that with Max [Verstappen] and also with Isack [Hadjar]. But how they get to that point is up to Racing Bulls,” Mekies told Yardbarker.

Read also: Mbappe misses out on Ballon d’Or, but sets French record with nine consecutive top-ten finishes

Alan Permane, the Racing Bulls team principal who signed a contract extension through 2031 earlier this month, has kept the tone patient in public.

“We’re trying to apply a little bit of science, and that takes some time. We’re not in a rush to do anything, and I’m very confident the right decision will be made,” Permane told reporters over the Brazilian GP weekend, adding he was “sure when we announce it in the coming weeks, everyone will be happy”. La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that the renewal should arrive before Las Vegas.

Tsolov is the F2 wildcard

The alternative in the mix is Nikola Tsolov, a 19-year-old Red Bull junior fighting for the Formula 2 title in his rookie season. Tsolov impressed on his F1 practice debut in Mexico, finishing a tenth of a second behind Lawson’s teammate Arvid Lindblad despite never having driven the car before.

Lawson admits no assurance

Speaking to Sky Sports around the Brazilian weekend, Lawson did not hide how exposed he felt.

Read also: Protests planned outside Ottawa arena as Ovechkin brings record chase to Canadian capital

“In Mexico I gave it everything. There’s definitely no assurance at the moment [for next year]. It’s a tough sport. Right now, I don’t know what else to say, really,” he told Sky Sports F1.

Elsewhere he described his position as “pretty blurry at the moment, honestly”, a telling admission from a driver who was handed the Red Bull seat alongside Max Verstappen at the start of 2025 and demoted back to Racing Bulls after two grands prix.

Permane sets the clock

The Las Vegas Grand Prix runs on 19-21 November. Permane has said the 2027 line-up will be announced “in the coming weeks”, and multiple reports now place that call before the Vegas weekend begins.

Read also: Tiger Woods set for Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins as neighbours after $276m NFL deals