Bob McMurray: Formula 1 Commentator on Liam Lawson claiming Red Bull Racing's second seat for 2025

Red Bull have given Liam Lawson his Formula 1 wings. 

Lawson will take the Red Bull team's second seat for 2025 following the departure of Sergio Perez. 

The Kiwi driver has raced 11 times across the previous two seasons as an emergency or mid-season replacement. 

F1 Commentator Bob McMurray told Heather du Plessis-Allan that the task in front of Lawson is massive. 

He says he’ll be expected to match —or better— a four-time world champion in a team he’s moulded around himself.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
As you've heard this morning, the speculation is finally over
and Liam Lawson has been named as Red Bulls next
full time IF one driver. He's going to partner with
Max Verstappin. His days being on a one hundred thousand
dollars salary as a reserve driver are over. He's going
to be in the big money now. Motorsport expert and
former McLaren race member Bob McMurray is with us right now.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Bob, Hello, good morning Heather.

Speaker 1 (00:21):
Where does he rate? I mean, we have had a
lot of very very high profile drivers come out of
this country. Where does he rate? Is he the most
high profile?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
No? Well, I don't suppose he's got much of a
profile internationally at the moment compared to the likes of
Bruce McLaren's any home presume and that sort of thing.
But he's certainly joined their ranks, hasn't he. In that
he is a Formula one driver, but he's been a
Formula one driver for eleven races. Now, of course he's
an old hand, isn't he.

Speaker 1 (00:46):
How do you reckon he's going to go when he's
racing with Max ver Steppin, Because the problem is Max
has got a really weird style, doesn't.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
He Yeah, apparently he sets his car up differentely to
everybody else. But what Liam is going to have to
do is adapt completely. I mean, you know, it is
great news. It's a vindication for him, indication for his family,
of indication for he's a motorsport in the way that
the motorsport ladder has got him from kating all the
way through to Formula one. Okay, he's done it himself obviously,

(01:14):
but that ladder was there and he is now at
base camp on Everest. To put it that way, he
has got a huge mountain to climb now. I mean
he's got he's going to be expected to match or better,
preferably a full time world champion in a team that
he has molded around himself. Liam's done eleven races, so

(01:35):
that the task in front of him is massive. It's
going to get even bigger with all the pressure that
goes on, with the continuous interviews and why aren't you
doing this right? Why you do? You know there's going
to be an awful lot thrown at him, But knowing him,
knowing his family, I think he's more than capable of

(01:55):
coping with all that.

Speaker 1 (01:57):
What does his pay go up to Do you have.

Speaker 2 (01:59):
Any ideo, no idea more than he had. I wouldn't
say with an S on the end. No, not millions.
I would say his salary for this first year would
be it's got to be approaching a million, I would say,
but you know that's the US dollars. Yeah, I don't know.

(02:19):
I don't know how they do their contract, but that's
not it's not bad. I could handle that. But the
one thing he's got to do is make sure he's
got the contract all the way through the year and
he stays there because Red Bull have an awful habit
of getting rid of drivers when they don't like them
halfway through a season. So that's his main concern. He's

(02:39):
not concerned about the money now, just establishing his feet
on the ground in that team.

Speaker 1 (02:44):
Now the hard work, really says Bob, thank you very
much and thanks for getting up so early for us.
Bob McMurray speaking to us out of Sydney. We woke
him up. Motors board expert obviously former McLaren race driver
he Liam is. The other thing Liam needs to brace
himself for is that he's going to cop it on
social media, probably from media watch. Actually, they're already really
angry with him, they're already blaming him for this, and

(03:05):
he's the devil incarnate. But this is just the fun
of This is the fun of F one. So this
just comes with the territory. He's given an interview to
the Time, saying, not only did his parents have to
sell their house to basically fund his way through, you know,
learning how to raise and stuff, but his sisters had
to give up Irish dancing so that he could be
an F one. But hey, who makes two million bucks
out of Irish dancing? Right?

Speaker 2 (03:26):
So he.

Speaker 1 (03:30):
Just shot down like that, just shot down like that.
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