‘Just the beginning’: Lawson celebrates career-best finish in Austria

Liam Lawson achieved a career-best result after an impressive outing at the Austrian Grand Prix, with the Kiwi’s risky one-stop strategy rewarding him with a “very cool” sixth-place finish at Red Bull’s home circuit.

Merit with a dusting of good fortune during Saturday’s Qualifying session put the Racing Bulls driver in prime position for a positive Sunday, with Lawson lining up from P6 on the grid as the highest-placed Red Bull representative as the five lights went out.

“Yeah, [I’m] very happy,” Lawson said. 

“It’s been an incredibly tough season, and… with a lot of potential as well which, unfortunately, sometimes in F1, it doesn’t show.

“And the work behind the scenes, especially from the team has been incredible, and to not show it has been really tough and so to do that this weekend is a very cool feeling.”

He had a clean run into the first braking zone but lost out to Max Verstappen almost instantly — a move that, in hindsight, potentially saved Lawson’s race as the Red Bull driver was soon taken out by an out-of-control Kimi Antonelli just two corners later, with the opening lap incident seeing Lawson take a beating as well.

Despite the heavy knock at Turn 3, Lawson escaped without any major damage and was able to continue running, albeit three positions lower than where he started. 

Following a brief Safety Car period to clear the wounded Red Bull and Mercedes cars, it was a steady restart for the Kiwi who quickly found himself stuck in the middle of an unwavering DRS train of midfield competitors. 

Conjuring up a plan to break free of the confines the #30 found himself in, Racing Bulls opted to run a one-stop strategy only the experienced veteran of Fernando Alonso could replicate. 

Inheriting his way into the podium positions as his rivals made their first pitstops from Lap 20 onwards, Lawson was slowly eaten up by those charging back through the field on the fresher compound tyres — namely Lewis Hamilton who was on the receiving end of the RB driver’s defensive techniques when he was forced to use the grass as he attempted a pass on Lawson. 

On Lap 32, Lawson made his one and only pitstop of the race, pulling off the race track from fifth and rejoining in twelfth, armed with the hard compound tyre. 

His closest rivals were three seconds up the road as he resumed racing, so it wasn’t until Lap 40 that the Kiwi found himself putting his VCARB 02 to work, however, in a bid to defend from Alonso who had crawled into DRS range.

“Honestly, I felt like [the one-stop] was a risk — they knew it, honestly, and I’m super stoked with the work this weekend because they were sure about it,” Lawson said

“It was a tough race, obviously, with Fernando [Alonso] there — it’s always Fernando around — so yeah.

“We were quick where we needed to be before the DRS zones and I think that’s what saved us.”

The one-stop strategy duo inherited their way up the order, running in P5 and P6 before George Russell joined the fight, discarding of both drivers with the aid of 13-lap fresher C3 tyres. 

For the following 10 laps of the race, Lawson was tasked with holding off the hungry veteran who remained within a second of his rear wing until Alonso had bigger concerns in his mirrors.

As a result, Lawson ended the high-intensity race in a lonely sixth place, taking the chequered flag 4.7 seconds ahead of Alonso to end a breakthrough weekend with his best result in Formula 1. 

The rookie added eight points to his championship total of 12 points, jumping three places in the drivers’ standings while aiding Racing Bulls who moved ahead of Haas in Austria.

“It is [a relief], especially for the team, especially for our side of the garage who’s been pushing very, very hard and doing a lot of work as well to make me comfortable in the car,” the #30 said.

“I think that’s been something this year that’s been more challenging than the last couple of years, so yeah, very, very happy.”

Celebrations quickly got underway for the Faenza-based team, with Lawson relishing in his triumph for just one evening before switching his focus to the British Grand Prix — another uncharted challenge for the seasoned rookie driver which begins in just a few days’ time.

The Kiwi will take to the iconic Silverstone Circuit for the first hour of practice at 21:30 AEST on Friday, July 04.

Image: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool.

2025 British Grand Prix Schedule:

Friday, July 04:

FP1: 21:30 – 22:30

Saturday, July 05:

FP2: 01:00 – 02:00

FP3: 20:30 – 21:30

Sunday, July 06:

Qualifying: 00:00 – 01:00

Monday, July 07:

Race: 00:00

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