Racing Bulls finds itself in a common F1 problem of finding out that ‘three into two’ won’t go, with three drivers vying for two 2027 race seats.
Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad are the incumbents, with F2 title contender Nikola Tsolov eager for promotion to grand prix racing, and his title rival Rafael Camara set to join the grid with Haas next season.
Lindblad’s impressive rookie season has all but earned him an extension into a second season, with it likely to be Lawson vs Tsolov for the second seat.
RacingNews365 takes a look at the figures that will be central to deciding whether Lawson or Tsolov get the nod.
A change from Marko
Previously, the arrangement of who filled the four Red Bull-backed seats on the F1 grid was overseen by Red Bull GmbH advisor Helmut Marko and former Red Bull team principal and CEO, Christian Horner.
Indeed, it was Marko who pushed for Lawson’s promotion to Red Bull for 2025, something Horner has claimed his in memoir left him “uncomfortable.”
But with both Marko and Horner firmly out of the picture, the decision-making committee at Red Bull has changed.
There are six key players involved in the decision for the driver line-up at Racing Bulls, with this being the only unconfirmed team on the grid. Mercedes has not yet officially confirmed Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, but they will not be dropped, and whilst Oliver Bearman’s extension at Haas is not yet official, it is a matter of when, not if.
Those on the Red Bull-Racing Bulls decision-making committee are in the table below, listed in alphabetical order.
Aside from Peter Bayer and Alan Permane, whose Racing Bulls team Lawson races for, a key figure is Oliver Mintzlaff (below with Permane).
He serves as the CEO of Corporate Projects for Red Bull GmbH, and thus has direct control over both the company’s F1 teams.
Whilst the final decision will be taken by the shareholders, Chalerm Yoovidhya and Mark Mateschitz, they will act on the recommendation provided to them by Mintzlaff, Bayer, and Permane.
Yoovidhya owns 51% of the shares of Red Bull, with his father creating Krating Daeng – with Red Bull being closely related to the original drink designed for rural labourers. Mateschitz, the son of the late Dietrich, owns the remaining 49% of shares.
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