Why Zandvoort triggers ‘fear and pressure’ memories for Liam Lawson
Liam Lawson suddenly found himself called to make his F1 debut at the tricky 2023 Dutch Grand Prix.
It was two years ago that Liam Lawson made his Formula 1 debut, substituting in an AlphaTauri machine for an injured Daniel Ricciardo just after the Australian wrecked at Zandvoort and injured his wrist.
As reserve driver, Lawson was called into action partway through the weekend. But for the Kiwi driver, it was a debut weekend filled with “fear and pressure,” making it impossible to enjoy.
Liam Lawson admits Dutch GP debut fears
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
Two years ago, during Free Practice 2 for the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix, AlphaTauri driver Daniel Ricciardo suffered a broken metacarpal bone in his left hand as a result of a wreck at Turn 3.
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri spun moments before Ricciardo did, leaving the latter driver attempting to avoid any contact. While Ricciardo — who had just joined AlphaTauri in order to replace the outgoing Nyck de Vries two races earlier — did avoid contact with Piastri, he couldn’t avoid contact with the wall.
Ricciardo was deemed unfit to compete in the rest of the weekend, and indeed for the subsequent four races as well.
That left AlphaTauri driver Liam Lawson called into action for a busy Saturday and Sunday, leaving the Kiwi driver coming to grips with F1 machinery just ahead of his surprise F1 debut.
More from PlanetF1.com:
👉 F1 uncovered: The challenges faced by F1 teams in 2026
👉 Revealed: Why F2 can never prepare drivers for F1
Speaking with media, including PlanetF1.com, before the 2025 Dutch event, Lawson was asked to reflect on his debut at the Zandvoort track two years prior.
And for him, he was left to admit, “I don’t think it’s good memories, because my memories of that weekend were just fear and pressure.”
That’s completely understandable. In FP3, Lawson brought out a red flag for a spin, and in qualifying, he set the slowest time, which meant he had to line up from the very back of the grid. The last-minute nature of his call-up meant he was learning on the fly, and that can be extremely brutal.
“It was just a very tough weekend,” Lawson admitted. “I think I was just very relieved to get through it, and I learned a lot from it going into the next few races that I had.
“But it wasn’t a fun weekend!”
Asked if that meant he didn’t enjoy his F1 debut, Lawson said, “No, honestly I didn’t.
“It was so chaotic. Qualifying was very tricky. The race was even trickier,” he said.
The race itself was drenched in rain, resulting in a 45-minute red flag on Lap 64, leaving just a six-lap dash to the finish.
“It was very much survival, trying to learn everything I could,” Lawson reflected.
“I remember, there was probably 20 laps in there that it dried up, and I got into a rhythm, and I enjoyed that.
“And then it rained again, and it was a red flag.
“So it wasn’t a super enjoyable experience.”
Nevertheless, Lawson managed to finish the race just outside of the points, in 13th overall. All things considered, that was a commendable, if challenging, start for Lawson, but it is no surprise he was left wanting in the enjoyment department.
With a ninth-place finish in Singapore signaling his only points-scoring run during his five-race stretch as Ricciardo’s stand-in in 2023, Lawson netted two points. and finished 20th in the driver standings. And in 2024, he was back behind the wheel — this time replacing Ricciardo for good.
Read next: Why Liam Lawson isn’t thinking about Red Bull return
