News summary
- Liam Lawson returned to Red Bull at the Dutch GP to replace the injured Isack Hadjar and finished seventh.
- The New Zealander compared his positive experience at Zandvoort with his two-race stint for Red Bull in 2025.
- Lawson said the 2026 car is much easier to drive, while the RB21 had a much more “extreme” limit.
At the Dutch GP, Liam Lawson switched teams and was called up by Red Bull to replace injured driver Isack Hadjar. After finishing the race seventh and scoring points, the New Zealander compared his positive experience at Zandvoort with the two previous rounds he contested for Red Bull in 2025, when he ended up being dropped.
Last year, Lawson took over Sergio Pérez’s seat at Red Bull at the start of the season, but his stint was short-lived as he returned to Racing Bulls after disappointing in the opening two rounds. This time, however, he is more experienced and performed well at Zandvoort, while Max Verstappen crashed and retired on the opening lap.
Asked after the race about his two very different experiences with Red Bull, Lawson compared them and concluded that the car this year is much better and easier to drive, while the RB21 had a much more “extreme” limit. He had also never raced before in Australia or China, the venues for the first two rounds of the 2025 season.
“The main issue last year was that there were two tracks I had never been to. So, on top of that, I still had to learn how to drive a car that was already very difficult to drive. The car now, on the other hand, perhaps isn’t as difficult to drive or take to the limit,” Lawson explained.
“So, it’s more about putting all the other pieces together, preparing the tires, finding the right balance in the car and getting used to the way it actually behaves, rather than dealing with a car that, last year, was simply very difficult to take to the limit. I went into last year thinking I would have more time in the car, so, in a way, I was just adapting to everything Max had in the car,” the New Zealander recalled.
“And there were a lot of different things for me, such as the pedals, the steering and everything else. I didn’t have time to get used to that. [At Zandvoort], I said: ‘Let’s make the car as close to mine as possible,’” he recounted.
So far in 2026, Lawson has already scored more points than he did in 2025, with 49 points, enough to place him ninth in the Drivers’ Championship. Last year, he finished the campaign with 38 points in 14th place in the standings.
“In 2025, the car was at such an extreme limit, at least at the beginning of the season, that if you weren’t at that limit, it would cost you lap time. This year, there are many more factors involved,” Lawson analyzed when discussing Red Bull once again.
“Having more time with this car and during this regulation cycle, even though the car is very different, means there are many things that influence how you build a lap with these power units. Having the same power unit also helps,” Lawson concluded.
Formula 1 returns this weekend, from September 4 to 6, at Monza. GRANDE PRÊMIO will cover all the action from the Italian GP, the 13th round of the 2026 season.
FAQ
1. Why did Liam Lawson return to Red Bull at the Dutch GP?
Lawson was called up to replace the injured Isack Hadjar for the Dutch GP.
2. How did Lawson’s 2026 Red Bull experience differ from 2025?
Lawson said the 2026 car is easier to drive and less extreme at the limit than the RB21 he drove during his brief stint with Red Bull in 2025.
3. How many points does Liam Lawson have in the 2026 F1 season?
Lawson has 49 points in the 2026 Drivers’ Championship, placing him ninth in the standings.
