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Tag: Calum Nicholas

  • Liam Lawson Praised After Impressive Red Bull Comeback at Dutch GP

    Liam Lawson Praised After Impressive Red Bull Comeback at Dutch GP

    Former Red Bull mechanic and current team ambassador Calum Nicholas has praised Liam Lawson’s “absolutely brilliant” adaptation after the New Zealander stepped into Red Bull’s Formula 1 seat at the Dutch Grand Prix.

    Lawson was unexpectedly called up to replace Isack Hadjar, who withdrew from the final F1 event at Zandvoort because of a wrist injury. Despite the short notice, the Racing Bulls driver delivered a strong performance alongside four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

    Nicholas praises Lawson’s Red Bull return

    “He seems to have just taken everything really calmly under his wing, and he’s had a solid weekend,” Nicholas explained during the Talking Bull podcast.

    “For the car that we’ve had underneath us this weekend, he maximised the results that were available with the car he had, and that would be great for him.”

    Lawson’s appearance marked his first return to the Red Bull seat since his demotion from the Milton Keynes team in 2025. The 24-year-old replaced Sergio Perez for the 2025 season but was moved back to Racing Bulls after just two races.

    “It was really important for him to just have a quiet weekend, but do a really, really good job. And that’s exactly what he did,” Nicholas continued.

    “With all the noise about it and obviously what he’d been through before in the car. So to be able to make that hop really quickly at the last minute and do a solid job. Absolutely brilliant for him. I’m really happy for his weekend and for him.”

    Laurent Mekies backs Lawson’s performance

    Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies also acknowledged the difficulty of the task handed to Lawson.

    “It’s never easy to step into a different team, a different car for a race like that, and he’s done a good job,” Mekies said. “He was only one tenth away from Max yesterday in qualifying, and today took the points that were available to him pace-wise with seventh place.”

    Source: www.motorsport.com

  • Isack Hadjar’s Dutch GP Withdrawal Was a “Sign of Confidence,” Says Calum Nicholas

    Isack Hadjar’s Dutch GP Withdrawal Was a “Sign of Confidence,” Says Calum Nicholas

    Isack Hadjar’s decision to withdraw from the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix because of a wrist injury showed confidence rather than weakness, according to former Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas.

    Hadjar had made an impressive start to the 2026 Formula 1 season alongside four-time world champion Max Verstappen at Red Bull. However, he stood down for the Zandvoort race after sustaining the injury, allowing Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson to take his place at short notice.

    Lawson finished seventh in a chaotic race after Verstappen’s Red Bull crashed out on the opening lap.

    Hadjar’s Dutch Grand Prix absence praised

    Speaking on the latest episode of the Talking Bull podcast, Nicholas praised Hadjar for prioritising his fitness and the remainder of the season.

    “To take the week out as a precaution to make sure that he was fit for the rest of the season actually shows the confidence that he’s had all year,” Nicholas explained.

    “He’s been doing an incredible job. It’s a real sign of the confidence that he’s got to be able to just say, ‘Look, I’m not 100%. I’m going to take this week out as a precaution.’ And yeah, hopefully we see him back in the car in Monza.”

    Isack Hadjar, Red Bull Racing. Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images

    It has not yet been confirmed whether Hadjar will return to the cockpit for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, which takes place from 4 to 6 September. The Red Bull driver was nevertheless present with the team at Zandvoort.

    “We also had Isack with us this weekend even though he couldn’t be driving,” team principal Laurent Mekies said. “He was with the team trying to take the learning and trying to make sure we can push all together as strongly as we can next week in Monza.”

    In his first season with Red Bull, Hadjar sits eighth in the drivers’ championship with 68 points. Verstappen is sixth with 112 points.

  • Calum Nicholas Says Red Bull Lacked the Pace for Max Verstappen’s Dutch GP Podium Fight

    Calum Nicholas Says Red Bull Lacked the Pace for Max Verstappen’s Dutch GP Podium Fight

    Former Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas believes Max Verstappen would not have challenged for a podium at the Dutch Grand Prix even if he had avoided his opening-lap crash, arguing that Red Bull lacked the pace to compete with the frontrunners.

    Verstappen crashes on the opening lap at Zandvoort

    The final Formula 1 race at Zandvoort began dramatically. Although the rain had stopped before the start, damp patches remained on the circuit. Verstappen ran onto a wet section while negotiating the final banked corner and suffered a heavy crash into the wall.

    The incident ended the home hero’s race, while Red Bull team-mate Liam Lawson went on to finish seventh and score six points for the Milton Keynes-based team. Lawson was standing in for the injured Isack Hadjar.

    Speaking on Red Bull’s official Talking Bull podcast, Nicholas said Verstappen would probably have finished in a similar position to Lawson had he completed the race.

    “One of the things that we’ve perhaps struggled with a little this year is when we’re in gusty, windy conditions, the car just seems a little bit unhappier,” Nicholas explained.

    “It creates a little bit more work for the drivers and we’ve got to work out what it is that’s at the bottom of all that. But I don’t think it’s a disaster.

    “Liam probably had a boring, lonely race. Big gap ahead of him, big gap behind him. But that was just the pace of the car. Even if Max had completed this race and not had the incident on lap one, I think that’s pretty much where he would have ended up as well, in that space between the frontrunners and those behind us. I really don’t think that there was a lot more to offer this week.”

    McLaren’s Lando Norris won the Dutch Grand Prix, with Mercedes drivers Kimi Antonelli and George Russell completing the podium.