Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson went into the Qatar Grand Prix under pressure to perform, and he delivered with a ninth-place finish that added two more points to his total.
Right now, many fans could argue that no one in the F1 paddock is facing more pressure than Liam Lawson.
The rest of the 2026 grid is already set, leaving Red Bull and Racing Bulls as the only teams yet to confirm their line-ups.
While Ted Kravitz offered some encouraging words about Lawson’s future during the Qatar Grand Prix weekend, nothing has been finalised yet.
Yuki Tsunoda has Honda’s backing to stay on, and even though their power unit deal is ending, there is still a case for keeping him around. That leaves Lawson needing strong results to make his case.
Starting from 12th on the grid in Qatar, Lawson navigated a chaotic race with two pit stops to finish ninth and collect valuable points for Racing Bulls.
Liam Lawson offers his view on damage control after the Qatar Grand Prix
Lawson was eliminated in Q1 for the Sprint Race and could only climb to 14th, but Sunday’s main event went better for him.
He started six places behind Isack Hadjar, but the Frenchman’s late puncture ended up costing him a solid points finish.
Lawson benefited from that, and as he crossed the line, his engineer told him: “Yeah, I think for us a decent recovery.”
“Yeah, exactly. Still, damage limitation. It’s a shame he had to retire for a front left puncture,” Lawson replied.
Another message followed over the radio: “Good drive from you. Solid. And we managed those tyres very nicely.
“At the end with free air, those were really good laps to open the DRS gap straight away from Yuki, and that managed from there.”
Lawson added: “I mean, honestly, the traffic is just giving us a lot…”
He was then asked: “How was the balance in free air towards the end, Liam?
The Racing Bulls driver responded: “The balance in free air was much better. If anything, I was very limited. Yeah, I think the medium set has been that close, and I think I pressured too much at the start.”
Liam Lawson sees the bright side after Qatar Grand Prix
Racing Bulls head into the Abu Dhabi season finale in a strong position to secure sixth place in the constructors’ championship.
Hadjar is aiming to break into the top 10 of the drivers’ standings, while Lawson is locked in a close battle with Oliver Bearman and Tsunoda for 12th place.
After the race, Lawson said: “It’s positive to come away from the race with points after where we started. We had really strong pace when we were in clean air, but then spent the majority of the race in traffic.
“It’s a shame not to have both cars in the points today after the damage Isack experienced towards the end, however, I’m looking forward to closing out the season in Abu Dhabi while we fight for our position in the Constructors’.”
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
