Liam Lawson is building a case for his future in Formula 1 in Singapore: a seat for 2027 is not yet certain, but the Racing Bulls driver ‘feels good’
Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson is currently building a strong case for his future in Formula 1: the 24-year-old New Zealander finished seventh at both the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia and the night race in Singapore. “Personally, I feel really good,” Lawson told Sky UK.
“If you look at this ‘triple-header’: we were probably at our strongest during this phase – myself included,” says the Racing Bulls driver, who came away empty-handed in Azerbaijan solely because of the collision with his team-mate Arvid Lindblad. “Of course, we really should have scored points in all three races.”
“But as a team we managed to do that, and I think that shows we’re well positioned,” said Lawson, recalling his team-mate Lindblad’s seventh-place finish in Baku. Racing Bulls has clearly established itself as the fifth-strongest force behind the top four teams – Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren – over the past three races.
Lawson has recently shown himself to be stronger than his younger team-mate. This suggests at least a little bit of competition is emerging within the team, as neither driver has a contract for 2027 yet. At the same time, another candidate is already pushing for the seat, with a potential successor from Formula 2 in the running.
Liam Lawson knew: “It all comes down to Turn 1!”
Lawson is therefore doing everything he can to secure his place in Formula 1 for the coming season. He managed to do just that in Singapore as well. “A very strong race today, especially for Liam,” praised Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane. The New Zealander laid the foundations for his seventh place right from the start.
“We started on the soft tyres,” said Lawson. “When the tyre warmers were removed and I saw that [Pierre Gasly] was on mediums, I knew, to be honest, that it would all come down to Turn 1. That’s actually what I was thinking about the whole time: getting off to a good start and trying to catch him at Turn 1.”
The plan worked: Lawson got the better of his rival in the first corner. Afterwards, “he was able to pull away confidently and maintain his lead throughout the race, whilst keeping tyre wear well under control,” praised his team principal. “We reacted when Gasly and Nico Hülkenberg came into the pits.”
Lawson beats team-mate Arvid Lindblad by a clear margin
During the pit stop, “we switched to medium tyres for the rest of the race to minimise the risk posed by safety car periods,” says Permane, explaining Racing Bulls’ strategy. “From then on, it was a fairly straightforward run to the chequered flag.”
“I think the soft tyres were pretty strong,” adds Lawson. “During the first stint, I was a bit worried because they felt almost too good – and I knew, of course, that I’d ultimately be finishing the race on mediums. But to be honest, the car was very good on both compounds.”
Team-mate Arvid Lindblad finished only 15th at the Singapore Grand Prix and thus failed to score any points. The internal team battle was therefore clearly won by Lawson, who, with his recent performances, continues to build a case for a future in Formula 1. So there are good reasons why the New Zealander is currently feeling “very good”.