Newstalk ZB's D'Arcy Waldegrave and the NZ Herald's Bonnie Jansen get together to preview the weekend's sport.
Video / NZ Herald
Liam Lawson’s 2024 is set in stone – to an extent.
The 21-year-old had a breakout year in 2023, competing in five Formula 1 Grand Prix as an injury replacement and earning his first points, and finishing second in the Japanese Super Formula championship.
This year, there is a lot less driving on the horizon as he is set to operate solely as a reserve driver for both Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App RB (formerly AlphaTauri) Formula 1 teams.
He will, however, be doing some driving, but told the Herald the exact make-up of his driving programme is still a work in progress.
“In terms of what I’ll be driving and when I’ll be driving, that’s still to be set out. I’d love to be behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car and we’re all working towards trying to make that happen – whether it’s testing or racing – but right now nothing is confirmed.”
Lawson’s performances in Formula 1 last season drew plenty of attention as he continually impressed and when he finished ninth at the Singapore GP it was the highest finish any AlphaTauri driver had achieved at the point of the season.
He was, however, overlooked for a fulltime role in 2024 with the team opting to stick with incumbent drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda.
While disappointing for Lawson to miss out, he remains highly rated by the powers that be at Red Bull and is seen as a part of their future. Speaking to German outlet Oe24, Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko said, as it stood, Lawson would have a place on the grid in 2025, but he also wanted to see Lawson drive a few more races in 2024 “to see where his potential really lies.”
Liam Lawson raced in five Formula 1 Grand Prix for AlphaTauri last year. Photo / Getty Images
Any chance behind the wheel for Lawson will come at the expense of either Ricciardo, Tsunoda or Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, all of whom are on expiring contracts in 2024.
There has been plenty of speculation about Perez’s seat in the last year, and the Mexican is expected to be watched very closely in 2024. The Red Bull team have no issue with changing drivers midseason - as shown last year when Ricciardo replaced Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri after 10 races. Should any of the three drivers be ousted due to lack of performance, it is expected Lawson will be the new driver on the grid.
Reports suggest if Perez is cut early, Ricciardo would move into the Red Bull seat and Lawson would drive for the Visa Cash App RB (VCARB) team.
Lawson’s efforts in 2023 won him plenty of fans, given the success he was able to have in such a short time behind the wheel in F1, however he said in reviewing his full season with the team, there was no real need for as deep a dive into things as some might expect.
“It’s really just a few conversations. We have conversations over the year as the season’s going along and then at the end it’s really just pretty brief,” he said.
“I think we all recognised that [winning Super Formula] was achievable and that the speed was there, but obviously to win a championship, you need more than that. There’s things that I did over the season as well that I reflect on that I will probably regret, let’s say, in that championship moment that cost a lot of points, but it’s part of the process.”
The world of Formula 1 can change very quickly, but while Lawson is content to bide his time for the immediate future, he will undoubtedly be linked to seats throughout the year as, of the 20 drivers on the Formula 1 grid, 14 of them, including three of the four Red Bull drivers, are on contracts that end after this year – including Lewis Hamilton who has already announced his move from Mercedes to Ferrari for 2025.
But ahead of the new season, Lawson was focused on making the most of his role and doing what he could to help the team as a reserve.
Last week, he was in Italy linking up with them as the first Grand Prix looms on the horizon in Bahrain at the start of March, and said it was an exciting time for the VCARB team now racing under a new name with new leadership.
“From my conversations and involvement so far, it’s looking really promising and exciting,” Lawson said.
“It’s not something that will probably happen straight away, but obviously with the direction the team’s going, I think in time the improvements can be pretty big, which is obviously exciting for everyone.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
