Liam Lawson is a New Zealand racing driver who made his debut in 2023 for AlphaTauri and currently drives for Red Bull Racing alongside Max Verstappen.
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Born | Liam Lawson 11 February 2002 (age 22) Hastings, New Zealand |
|---|
Born on 11 February 2002, Lawson’s career showed early promise when he became the 2019 champion in the Toyota Racing Series. This success led to his inclusion in the Red Bull Junior Programme, a platform for recruiting talented drivers for its F1 team.
In 2021, Lawson joined the Red Bull AF Corse team in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM). Partnering with Alex Albon, another F1 driver from the Red Bull stable. Despite a successful season, he narrowly missed clinching the championship in the final round.
His success continued in Formula 2, where he drove for the Carlin team. In the 2022 season, his consistent results culminated in a third-place finish in the championship standings. Lawson finished a place higher the following season in the 2023 Super Formula Championship. Competing with Team Mugen, his results earned him second in the championship.
Alongside his success in the lower racing series, Lawson played the role of a reserve driver for Red Bull Racing when, in 2023, he made his F1 debut during the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix for their sister team AlphaTauri, stepping in for an injured Daniel Ricciardo. He eventually replaced Ricciardo for five races. Lawson quickly made his mark by securing his first points in F1 at his third race weekend, the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix. He bowed out of the 2023 season, returning to a reserve role after the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix.
On F1’s return to Singapore for the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix the following season, rumours circled the paddock that Lawson would again replace Ricciardo at the team, now called the Visa Cash App RB F1 Team (RB for short). The following Thursday, 26 September, Lawson was confirmed with a full-time race seat alongside teammate Yuki Tsunoda for the remaining six races of the 2024 season.
On 19 December 2024, Lawson was promoted to the parent team, Red Bull Racing, for the 2025 season, replacing Sergio Perez to partner Max Verstappen.
