Lawson mind games verdict as Racing Bulls driver praised as ‘perfect’ benchmark’

Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad may be in a head-to-head battle for a Red Bull seat, and even their F1 futures, but Lindblad’s manager Oliver Rowland says the New Zealander isn’t playing mind games with his rookie teammate.

Instead, he’s working with Lindblad as the teammates strive to get the best out of themselves and Racing Bulls.

Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad avoid mind games at Racing Bulls

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This season Lawson has found himself partnered with a rookie for the second year running, after Isack Hadjar was promoted to Red Bull with Lindblad then stepping up from Formula 2.

Lindblad’s signing was the final act of former Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, with the Briton’s confirmation coming a mere week before Marko left Red Bull.

“We’re looking for a new champion,” the Austrian had once said of Lindblad. “I think the next one which looks really promising is Arvid Lindblad.”

It is, however, Lawson who has emerged as the stronger of the two in the first half of this season. The New Zealander has scored 43 points to his teammate’s 23, and sits ninth in the Drivers’ Championship.

Liam Lawson v Arvid Lindblad: Racing Bulls F1 2026 scores

F1 2026: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between teammates

F1 2026: Head-to-head race statistics between teammates

But while it’s been fun and games – and guns out – off the track, Lawson and Lindblad have had a few on-track spats.

Their most recent wheel-to-wheel battle played out at the Belgian Grand Prix, with Lindblad noted for ‘forcing another driver off the track’ after Lawson was squeezed by his teammate into the gravel.

However, after all is said and done on the track, Lindblad’s manager Rowland gratefully noted that there were no games off it.

“He is the perfect benchmark for us,” the reigning Formula E champion told RacingNews365. “I mean, this guy has got more experience, is a little bit older.

“He’s also very, very calm, and there are no games going on, which is really, really refreshing, actually, for someone so young, and it just helps the team focus on what they want to do.

“And I think for us, he’s been fantastic, and yeah, we couldn’t really have dreamed of a better scenario for Arvid to learn in, and hopefully they can both keep getting really good results.”

The teammates finished in formation in a four-race streak from Monaco to Austria, with Lawson ahead in all four of those battles.

And every time, says Rowland, it forces Lindblad to up his game.

“I think what’s been really nice for us is that Liam’s been really solid and fought back,” said Rowland, “and he had a really good couple of races, and then Arvid fights back and betters himself.

“That’s exactly what you want in a team dynamic, where they’re pushing each other to new levels every weekend.

“And, for us, it was discussing, ‘Where is he [Lawson] better, where can we be better?’ And that’s a really, really nice thing to have, especially for Arvid.”

Lawson and Lindblad are not only fighting to be first in line should Max Verstappen decide to leave Red Bull, but potentially also for their F1 futures.

Racing Bulls will give Formula 2 championship leader Nikola Tsolov a TPC (Testing of Previous Car) outing in a 2025 Racing Bulls VCARB02 later this month. The Bulgarian driver is Red Bull’s next big prospect.

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