What’s Next for Liam Lawson?

Written by Jiya Mahapatra, Edited by Meghana Sree

Liam Lawson has been a massive talking point over the course of this Formula One season, with a lot of people hoping to see him driving an F1 car next year. So, what is the Kiwi set to do in 2024?

Lawson had been a reserve driver for AlphaTauri for some time. Credits: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Lawson made his Formula One debut a couple of months ago at the Dutch Grand Prix, where he was brought in to temporarily replace Daniel Ricciardo at AlphaTauri after the Australian had sustained an injury. Lawson was immensely successful from the get-go, and managed to secure a P13 finish in his first F1 race ever.

He continued to impress with coming races, and even managed to score points at the Singapore Grand Prix. The entire motorsports community was in awe of his performance – he had managed to gain points in a car that had been struggling for most of the year, and he managed to do it as a rookie who had been thrown in with little warning.

However, despite all his impressive performances, he still didn’t manage to secure an F1 seat for 2024.

Lawson during the qualifying session ahead of the Monza Grand Prix; Credits: Michael Potts/BSR Agency/Getty Images

Next year, he will be a full-time reserve driver for both Red Bull and its sister team AlphaTauri, and it doesn’t appear as though he has any plans to pursue any other series.

Lawson has stated: “Obviously I want to be in racing, but the goal is to be in F1.” He then went on to say: “As much as I would like to be racing a car, it’s what Red Bull have decided is best for me right now. They want me to be 100 percent focused on being ready at any point”. The commitment that Lawson has to the team is immense, and it only gives Red Bull another reason to consider him as a candidate for one of their seats in the future.

Lawson in the AlphaTauri garage following Daniel Ricciardo’s return to F1 in Austin; Credits: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Although it may have been temporary, his short-lived stint in F1 has only made him even hungrier for a seat. In an interview with the New Zealand Herald, he shared: “My whole life has been trying to get to Formula 1. [..] Now that I have raced, it’s absolutely the only thing I would be happy with”.

This drive and motivation is one of the things that makes Lawson stand out, and it’s an integral trait that teams (whether that be Red Bull or otherwise) are going to start noticing in the future.

Are we going to see Lawson in an F1 seat soon? We believe so. Regardless, we at Divebomb are very excited to see what the future holds for him.