Arvid Lindblad won the Formula Regional Oceania Championship title, securing enough points to qualify for an FIA super licence, which is a huge step in Red Bull’s future.
Red Bull has struggled to find stability in their driver line-up in recent years. We have seen other top teams make decisive moves that prepared and set up their future drivers. Mercedes’ focus was on Kimi Antonelli’s progression and Ferrari’s on Oliver Bearman.
However, Red Bull has been a revolving door of underperforming juniors or past their prime veterans. This predicament has left the future of Red Bull Racing feeling rocky.
With Max Verstappen teasing his retirement more frequently the question of what happens to the team in the Dutchman’s departure becomes increasingly prevalent.
Indecision
Behind the scenes at Red Bull, indecision had been rife. Christian Horner and Helmut Marko have taken different views on what Red Bull after Verstappen looks like. This inability to find the right fit played a role in their 2024 loss of the constructors’ title as the team lacked the well-matched, high-performing duo that the other front runners had.
They have the benefit of the Racing Bulls team, a second F1 team specifically designed to test junior drivers. However, with drivers like Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo finding places at RB with no progression, Red Bull was losing a valuable asset.
2025 represents an important shift to creating a clear path of progression and testing for their juniors. By moving Liam Lawson up to Red Bull he will be tested against Verstappen, while Isack Hadjar will be tested against Tsunoda.
This plan means that by the end of 2025, Red Bull will have a clearer idea of which of their drivers have potential and with the end of Tsunoda’s contract a possible seat free to promote a further junior.
Why Lindblad?
Since Verstappen’s success, it’s no secret that Red Bull has been searching for the next prodigy to fill his sport much like Verstappen did for Vettel. While Hadjar or Lawson may fill that role, Marko and Horner’s attention has fallen on 17-year-old, Arvid Lindblad.
After narrowly missing out on the Italian F4 Championship title in 2023, Lindblad made his Formula 3 debut with PREMA. At 16 years old he made an impressive debut winning the Bahrain sprint race. His rookie season continued from success to success becoming the first person to complete the double in F3. With a sprint race and feature race win in Silverstone.
With four wins and one other podium, he finished fourth in the championship. A string of bad luck at the end of the season took him out of contention for the title. However, the standout performances clearly showed his talent in the sport.
In 2025, Lindblad is making the jump up to F2 with Campos Racing. But ahead of the 2025 season, it was important for the 17-year-old to acquire the necessary points to make him eligible for a super licence.
FROC season
With European racing on a break over winter. Lindblad took part in the Formula Regional Oceania Championship to find the points he was looking for.
Aiming for a top-three finish the talented Red Bull junior took an utterly dominant title charge. He collected six wins and 4 other podiums across the 15 races. With the series manager calling Lindblad ‘on the finest we’ve seen’. The momentum around him is supported by his performances.
Now before even taking part in the Formula 2 season, Lindblad has the points necessary to take part in Formula 1 after his 18th birthday or with special dispensation and it opens the doors for a potential 2026 seat.
Feature Image Credit: Dutch Photo Agency / Red Bull Content Pool
