F1 News
Lawson looks to 'massively valuable' Verstappen to support him at Red Bull
Liam Lawson steps in for his first season at Red Bull Racing this season. For the first time in his career, he is driving a full year in Formula 1 and that too with a top team. On the Thursday before the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, the New Zealander talked about whether he feels the car adapts easily to his style.
Lawson on RB21 and Max Verstappen
Lawson began: "I think so. It feels it feels good. Obviously, Max is gonna have a much clearer indication because of what he's driven in the past, as a as a reference. So, from where I sit, it's more adapting to what it is, and trying to, honestly, to match what he's doing. So, yeah, so far it feels good, but, honestly, in pre-season testing, you don't really get the clearest of indications. We know McLaren is strong, probably stronger than us at the moment."
Liam Lawson is competing in his first full season in Formula 1 with Red Bull Racing, after beating Yuki Tsunoda to promotion from Racing Bulls.
The New Zealander was also asked what it is like now to have Max Verstappen as a teammate. "Honestly, it's just a big opportunity, to have somebody, Max, when he came into the sport, was already very, very fast. And I get him as a teammate, ten years with four world championships, and he's very experienced. So I think that it's more of an opportunity than anything for me to come in here effectively.
"To have him as a teammate to learn from is massively valuable. So, yeah, I think I just need to look at it that way and take advantage of that more than anything."
Lawson wants to take advantage of the opportunity alongside Verstappen
Verstappen and Lawson were both in action during the winter test, of course, but never were they on the track at the same time in the same car. This weekend, they will be, and the Kiwi wants to take advantage of that: "We've driven on different days, not at the same time. So, this week can be the first time that we drive the same session where I can compare directly in the same, you know, conditions. So that'll be when, obviously, I would be utilising that."
This article was written in collaboration with Cas van de Kleut
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