Lawson fends off Red Bull charge to score in Hungary

Liam Lawson’s Hungarian Grand Prix became a race of relentless defence, with the Racing Bulls driver spending more than half of the “pretty tough” 70-lap contest fending off Max Verstappen after committing to an evolving one-stop strategy that ultimately earned him points.

A qualifying session that saw both Racing Bulls drivers locking out Row 5 on the grid meant Lawson had guaranteed himself at least some form of interaction with Verstappen, who was starting just ahead in P8, however, what he didn’t anticipate was spending almost the entire race defending against the Red Bull driver.

From the outset of the Hungarian Grand Prix, Verstappen and Lawson engaged in battle, with the Racing Bulls driver getting the jump on the Dutchman as the field rounded the first turn to start the 70-lap race.

Eighth place was only temporary for Lawson, however, with Verstappen stepping it up a notch over the first three laps to reclaim his position and some, while Lance Stroll demoted into the Kiwi’s sights.

Lawson trailed the Aston Martin with the aid of DRS, though making a pass around the notoriously tricky confines of the Hungaroring proved too difficult for the #30, who started to look at the pitlane as his best chance to move up the order with a one-stop strategy. 

“Yeah, very, very happy,” Lawson said.

“I think it’s been a pretty tough race.

“It’s hard to time a pitstop when there’s this many cars on a small track like this.

“So, it’s always a bit nerve-racking when you know it’s a very important part of the race, but yeah, for us, our deg was really good and we were able to have a strong race.”

Also setting his mind on the pitlane was Verstappen, with the Dutchman the first of the top ten drivers to commit to a two-stop strategy on Lap 17, as he rejoined the race in P16.

Verstappen spent the next 15 laps clawing his way back up to the rear of Lawson’s VCARB 02, however, he remained at a one-second distance in his mirrors before Lawson made his first and only stop of the race on Lap 40.

The Williams of Carlos Sainz was Lawson’s first target as he rejoined the race less than a second behind the Spaniard, who was sitting in the final points-paying position before neighbouring pitstops promoted the duo. 

Within the span of four laps, the Kiwi managed to overtake Sainz and move into his starting position in P9 as he began closing the margin to Stroll ahead.

Lawson inherited another track position, however, it was a bittersweet promotion when Verstappen emerged from the pitlane on a fresh set of hard tyres eight laps younger than the Kiwi’s.

Running four seconds back on Lawson, Verstappen’s pitstop on Lap 48 reignited the fight between the former teammates, forcing the 23-year-old to spend the 20 laps defending from the Red Bull.

Verstappen had the DRS advantage over Lawson for the majority of his final stint, however, the lack of overtaking opportunities stopped the Dutchman from successfully completing the move for P8.

Instead, Verstappen dropped over three seconds back across the final three laps, allowing Lawson to take the chequered flag with a 3.1-second margin over him when the race came to a close. 

An eighth-place finish in Hungary adds four points to Lawson’s total of 20 points in the drivers’ standings, putting him equal with Pierre Gasly, and just two points behind Isack Hadjar after 12 rounds of racing with Racing Bulls. 

It will be three long weeks before the Kiwi can strive for a third consecutive points finish at the Dutch Grand Prix, with the long-awaited summer break lasting the duration of August for the sport.

“I think everybody, probably, needs a couple weeks off now, and we’ll definitely use that, and yeah, hopefully come back even stronger after the break in Zandvoort,” Lawson said.

On Verstappen’s home soil, the Dutch Grand Prix will run from August 29-31. 

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

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