Liam Lawson identifies key to F1 2026 success

Liam Lawson believes Racing Bulls’ best opportunity in F1 2026 lies in producing a steady stream of upgrades throughout the season.

With points in all three events so far, Racing Bulls has negotiated the regulation change better than many rivals, including the senior Red Bull team.

Liam Lawson says ‘much bigger things’ will define Racing Bulls’ F1 2026

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Lawson, however, has warned that the battle is far from over, and the competitive order could quickly change.

“The main thing is going to be on the development side for the teams,” the New Zealander told PlanetF1.com and other select media of the opportunities facing Racing Bulls over the balance of the F1 2026 season.

“Last year, we bring an upgrade to a race, we’d bring less upgrades, obviously, because we were finding it harder to find differences, and those upgrades would be maybe a few points of downforce.

“This year, we’re expecting to bring much bigger things throughout the year, and the rate of that hopefully will be faster as well.”

All-new regulations for F1 2026 have shuffled the established pecking order, while the immature ruleset leaves open the opportunity for teams willing to take an aggressive approach.

Early in a rules cycle, the freedom of not having a title charge to protect can create an advantage.

The challenge for Racing Bulls will be keeping up the pace throughout the season given its comparatively modest resources versus its larger, factory-backed rivals who will no doubt begin to assert themselves as the year wears on.

In the immediate future, Racing Bulls will debut aerodynamic upgrades at this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, with more to follow at the Canadian Grand Prix later in the month.

“We’ve got some good stuff coming,” said team boss Alan Permane.

Racing Bulls is one of F1’s smaller teams, operating across Italy and the United Kingdom.

It has been progressively building out its aerodynamics department in Milton Keynes, where it shares a wind tunnel with Red Bull Racing, while the cars are housed at the squad’s Faenza factory, not far from Imola.

Being within touching distance of the senior team is a significant accomplishment, even if it is early in the campaign, and reflects how exposed Red Bull Racing has been under the new rules.

For Racing Bulls, the real challenge will be keeping pace with rivals that are better equipped to accelerate through the season – especially those with factory support like Audi, Alpine, and Aston Martin.

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“I’m very confident that we can keep up, if not do better than the other midfield teams,” Permane insisted.

“There’ll be small steps almost every race, I would say, and then another two or three large upgrades already planned.

“Beyond that, so up to the shutdown, we’ve got a plan.

“I’m very confident we can stay with that group; we’re kind of in a group of four, which is Alpine, Haas, and Audi.”

Perhaps what gives Permane optimism is that the likes of Alpine and Audi have their own challenges.

Racing Bulls is coming to grips with a new power unit, as is Red Bull Racing, not to mention a changing working dynamic across the UK and Italy.

“To make inroads to the top guys, I’m not sure that’s going to be so easy,” Permane acknowledged.

“Of course, we will do our best, and we will try, and we will do everything we can, but they’re a bit of a step away.

“Certainly, fighting for podiums looks like it would be tough this year, but let’s see what we can do.”

From the cockpit, helping drive the team forward in that development race is a priority for Lawson.

Last year, he and Isack Hadjar pushed the team to sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, equalling the team’s best ever result.

While the top three, namely Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren, are some distance clear at the top of the standings, Racing Bulls is only four points shy of fourth – the spot currently occupied by Haas.

For Racing Bulls, the coming races will determine whether its early form is the product of a strong interpretation of the new rules or merely the volatility that often defines the opening phase of a regulation cycle.

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