Liam Lawson alerted Red Bull to Verstappen help in Brazil after Mexico spat

Liam Lawson made sure to alert his team – and Red Bull – to the fact that he supported Max Verstappen’s comeback in the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after their quibble in Mexico.

Verstappen surged from 21st on the grid to second place at Interlagos, whilst Lawson also thrived in the changeable conditions to continue his impressive run with seventh.

How Liam Lawson aided Verstappen’s comeback in Brazil

Lawson lined up third once various grid penalties had been applied and was running second in the opening stages after nipping past McLaren’s Lando Norris at the start.

But as the track dried, Lawson dropped into the clutches of the cars behind, with Verstappen’s early charge culminating in the pair running line astern by the ninth lap.

Two laps later, having reported over the radio that he was struggling with graining on his intermediate rubber, Lawson slowed on the Reta Oposto to allow Verstappen past.

Lawson, who lost over a second in the process, made it clear over the airwaves to his race engineer Alexandre Iliopoulos that it had been his call to let Verstappen through.

“The car behind is now Max,” Lawson was told on Lap 9 once Verstappen had cleared Nico Hulkenberg’s Audi.

Iliopoulos then asked Lawson to provide “feedback on balance”, to which the Kiwi responded: “It’s just graining, so I have no fronts, and the traction is really, really bad.”

Having asked whether he should attempt to get through the graining phase until the moment arrived to switch to slicks, Lawson was told: “We think that’s the best option.”

Later, once he had relinquished fifth to Verstappen, Lawson said, “Yep, I let him go”, before being informed that Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren was a second behind.

More from PlanetF1.com

Lawson’s decision to avoid hindering Verstappen’s eventual run to the podium comes after an incident between them in practice at the preceding Mexico City Grand Prix.

Lawson drew Verstappen’s ire when he refused to yield track position during FP2 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez and the pair made contact through the stadium section, triggering an investigation that landed both drivers a one-place grid penalty.

Verstappen was less than impressed with his ex-Red Bull teammate’s conduct, calling it “not very smart behaviour” given the uncertainty surrounding Lawson’s future in F1.

“I don’t think it’s called unlucky, maybe not very smart behaviour what he was trying to do there,” Verstappen told Sky F1 post-session.

“At the end of the day, it’s not going to change my weekend. But if I were him I would act a little bit smarter, because when you are fighting for your seat, it’s not very smart behaviour.”

But despite repeated speculation that he could be replaced, Racing Bulls announced earlier this week that Lawson will race for the team in 2027 alongside Arvid Lindblad.

Prior to the news, Lawson, who has helped steer the Faenza-based squad to the brink of a fifth-place finish, expressed that he appreciates the backing that he has received.

“Yeah, I appreciate all the support I’ve seen over the last few weeks,” he said in Brazil. “It’s honestly really nice to see.

“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. So at the moment, I’m just going to keep driving and, yeah, see what happens.”

Read next: Lando Norris reveals biggest lesson from McLaren’s failed F1 title defence