Lawson: 'Wouldn't be fair if I had to beat Verstappen straight away'
F1 News
Liam Lawson, Max Verstappen 's teammate for the upcoming Formula 1 season, was asked about his position as Red Bull Racing's second driver. The New Zealander explained that he is not expected to immediately beat the reigning world champion, but doesn't intend to have that be the case forever.
"I think it's a bit about being realistic. And, obviously, we all we all believe in ourselves. And if you are in the sport and you believe that somebody's better than you, then, you shouldn't really be here. We all believe we're the best deep down. So I think, obviously, I have that self confidence," Lawson explained to various media , including GPblog.
Lawson given gap limit to Verstappen?
Beating Verstappen right out of the gate is a highly optimistic target, though, he admits. "Realistically, where I am coming in now against somebody who's ten years in in this team for championships, and it's not really fair for me to expect myself to come in and beat somebody like that off the bat. So, for me, it's about using him to to get better and to develop as quickly as possible, and get towards that goal of winning as fast as possible."
With Pierre Gasly, Alexander Albon and Sergio Perez the issue was also that they couldn't get anywhere near close to the Dutchman. Has Red Bull outlined a maximum gap to Verstappen for Lawson?
"Honestly, no. I think it's, obviously, the closer the better, and that's the target going in, but it's not like a clear lap time definition. If I'm buried down the bottom of the field, then I'm not doing a good enough job, obviously. So I think the expectation is to just be close, and but I think there's also an understanding that starting the season, there's a lot to learn quickly, especially at these new tracks. So far it's all very sensible. There's no clear lap time number."
This article was written in collaboration with Esteban den Toom.
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