Liam Lawson sends blunt Red Bull message over uncertain F1 future

Liam Lawson is still waiting to find out if he has an F1 seat for 2027 after another super show at Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix.

The 24-year-old New Zealander has been terrific this season, and he added another stellar drive to his 2026 highlight reel by claiming a P7 finish at Interlagos.

It topped off another excellent weekend for the young Kiwi, who had started on the second row after qualifying in P5 and then having grid penalties promote him further.

While Lawson didn’t have the pace to hang on to his lofty P3 starting position he got ahead of race winner Lando Norris in the early stages and was again the best of the rest in F1’s fierce midfield battle. He finished P8 on track but was moved up a slot when Ferrari star Charles Leclerc was penalised for bumping him.

Lawson stands ninth in the Drivers’ standings with 89 points – some 51 ahead of rookie team-mate Arvid Lindblad. Despite his performances though Racing Bulls have still to confirm he will return again in 2027.

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Lawson on support: ‘I would love it if it was more from a team!

As speculation about a potential promotion for Bulgarian prodigy Nikola Tsolov continues, Lawson admits he is not sure what else he can do to prove his worth at this stage.

“I appreciate all the support I’ve seen over the last few weeks,” he said.

“It’s honestly really nice to see. Obviously, I would love it if it was more from a team! But at the moment, I’m just trying to enjoy driving the car because with everything else going on, I don’t really know what else I’m meant to do.

“I don’t know what else I’m meant to say to you guys. I’m just going to keep driving and yeah, see what happens.

“I feel like Alan’s [Permane, Racing Bulls team principal] been extremely supportive to me, and I appreciate that a lot, and I have enjoyed working closely with them and with the team this year. But obviously it’s a big organisation.”

Racing Bulls maximised Interlagos opportunity

Lawson was satisfied with his finishing position at Interlagos, feeling he and the team had not left points on the table.

“I feel like we maximised today. I had a strong race. I would have liked it to stay wet the whole race. It would have been cool. I probably would have had more of a shot there.

“But at the moment, we’re topping the midfield as a team, and that’s what we’re targeting every weekend.”

Lawson honest about where he stands in F1 pecking order

Lawson is also honest about where Racing Bulls are lacking when they do get a chance to compete at the front of the grid.

“I mean, crazy race. 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 [Antonelli] at some point in the lap,” he added.

“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.”

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