Nov 9 (Reuters) – Liam Lawson confirmed his status as the best of the midfield drivers with seventh place at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix on Sunday but still can do nothing but hope for the best when it comes to a spot on the grid for next season.
The Racing Bulls driver swept past eventual race winner Lando Norris to take second place early on in a wet-dry race at Interlagos before being overhauled by quicker cars and settling for six points.
It was the 15th time the New Zealander had scored points in 20 Grands Prix this season — a more consistent return than all but Lewis Hamilton, world champion Kimi Antonelli, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, George Russell and Lando Norris.
“I mean, crazy race,” Lawson told reporters. “Honestly, I had a really good start. Good grip in Turn 1. Obviously made up a place, and then to be honest, I was thinking I might try and attack Kimi at some point in the lap.
“But yeah, just once the pace stabilises, they’re a lot quicker than us, and we started to pull back. We were damaging our tyre, I think, quite a lot more than them. And then I think the pace on the dry was okay.”
“They” are the big four teams — Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren — whose eight drivers between them have locked up all the podium spots this season.
Lawson had two races among them, stepping up to replace injured Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar at the Italian and Spanish Grands Prix and finishing 14th and sixth.
It was a reminder of his two-race spell as Verstappen’s teammate at the start of last season before he was summarily despatched back to Racing Bulls and replaced by Yuki Tsunoda.
Memories of that relegation have proved hard to shift despite Lawson’s consistency since, and the 24-year-old has not yet been confirmed as a Racing Bulls driver for next season.
Unlike teammate Arvid Lindblad, the Red Bull organisation perhaps no longer views Lawson as a young talent to be developed and 19-year-old junior driver Nikola Tsolov has been strongly linked with a seat in 2027.
Question marks over Lawson’s judgement have also been around since he arrived in Formula One in 2023, most recently articulated by four-times world champion Verstappen after the two drivers collided in practice in Mexico last month.
“If I were him, I would act a little smarter, and when you’re fighting for your seat, it’s not very smart behaviour,” said the Dutchman.
Lawson said after Sunday’s race that all he could do while Racing Bulls boss Alan Permane makes his decision about next year was continue to enjoy his racing and keep the team at the top of the midfield of the grid.
“I feel like Alan’s been extremely supportive to me, and I appreciate that a lot, and I have enjoyed working closely with him and with the team this year,” he said.
“But obviously it’s a big organisation.”
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney in Sydney, editing by Peter Rutherford)
