Liam Lawson takes aim at Charles Leclerc over controversial ‘F2’ move

Liam Lawson has said Racing Bulls will go away and review the tap that helped Charles Leclerc get past the Kiwi in the closing stages of the São Paulo Grand Prix.

Lawson was defending against Leclerc in the closing laps when the Ferrari clumsily tapped the left-rear wheel of the Racing Bulls car, an unsettling move that helped Leclerc get past his rival.

Liam Lawson reacts to Charles Leclerc contact in São Paulo Grand Prix

Leclerc and Lawson have been summoned to see the stewards following the incident, with the Ferrari driver coming home in seventh place and less than two seconds clear of the Racing Bulls man.

Fortunately, the incident didn’t result in any significant damage to either car, despite the battle resulting in relatively firm contact as Leclerc’s wheel tapped against Lawson’s.

Asked for his perspective on the incident after the chequered flag, Lawson drew comparisons to a pre-F1 manoeuvre from Leclerc that he believes he echoed today.

In 2017, Leclerc tapped the left-rear wheel of Albon’s car at the hairpin in Abu Dhabi, a move that wrecked Albon’s momentum onto the straight and enabled Leclerc to get past and win the race.

“I think it was his wing that hit my tyre. So I think we got really lucky,” Lawson said of the incident.

“I feel like it was exactly like his GP2 move to Abu Dhabi, like on [Alex] Albon years ago.

“He did the same kind of thing, so maybe it’s his specialty. I don’t know if it’s legal or not. We’ll obviously go and review it, but it was a good battle overall.”

Lawson secured eighth place, a strong result in its own right, but the Kiwi was eying up an even stronger result in the early stages as he soared into second place at the start, even applying pressure to the race leader, Kimi Antonelli.

“I mean, crazy race,” Lawson said.

“Honestly, I had a really good start, good grip in Turn 1. Obviously, I made up a place, and then, to be honest, I was thinking I might try and attack Kimi at some point in the lap.

“But once the pace stabilised, they’re a lot quicker than us, and we started to fall back. We were damaging our tyres, quite a lot more than they were.

“I think the pace on the dry was okay. And then at the end, yeah, I tried to keep Charles there. We had some contact in [Turn] 12. I’ll go and review it. I don’t really know exactly what to say yet, but obviously I ended up losing the place.”

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Despite slipping back to finish in a more customary position for a Racing Bulls car in a race that hinted at the potential for surprises, Lawson said he felt he had maximised everything in terms of a result.

“I had a strong race. I would have liked it to stay wet the whole race. It would have been cool. Probably would have had more of a shot there.

“But, at the moment, we’re topping the midfield as a team, and that’s what we’re targeting every weekend.”

At present, Lawson is without a confirmed drive for F1 2027, despite the quality of his drives, as Racing Bulls is yet to clarify its driver choices for next season: Lawson’s position is under pressure from Formula 2 driver Nikola Tsolov.

A decision is expected before the end of the season, with the Kiwi facing the possibility that, despite his great season, he could be off the grid next year.

Asked whether he can feel the support of those who are advocating for Racing Bulls to keep him, Lawson said, “I appreciate all the support I’ve seen over the last few weeks.

“It’s honestly really nice to see. Obviously I would love it if it was more from a team, but, at the moment, I’m just trying to enjoy driving the car because, with everything else going on, I don’t really know what else you know I’m meant to do.

“I don’t know what else I meant to say to you guys. So, at the moment, I’m just going to keep driving and see what happens.

“Obviously, they’ll decide what they do there. I feel like Alan’s been extremely supportive to me, and I appreciate that a lot, and have enjoyed working closely with them and the team this year.

“But, yeah, obviously it’s [Red Bull] a big organisation.”

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