Lawson – at last

Liam Lawson – the kiwi racer who caught the eye of all Formula One teams with an audacious championship winning campaign in New Zealand in 2019, has finally secured a seat in Formula One for the remainder of the 2024 season.

Lawson filled in for an injured Daniel Ricciardo impressively in five Grands Prix in 2023 but has been on the side-lines since waiting for an opportunity to race in the F1 World Championship again.

Finally after plenty of speculation off track over the past few weeks and months, the 2019 Castrol TRS champion has been confirmed as Daniel Ricciardo’s replacement in the RB team for the remainder of the 2024 season. A full 2025 season will depend on how he goes over the remaining GPs.

Interestingly, Lawson re-joins an F1 grid that currently includes two other front runners from the 2020 Castrol Toyota Racing Series – Yuki Tsunoda and Franco Colapinto. That year’s New Zealand champion, Igor Fraga, is the only top four finisher in the championship missing from F1.

If he goes well and is signed for 2025, Lawson will become the third Castrol Toyota Racing Series champion to secure a full time seat in F1 after Lance Stroll and Lando Norris and one of 24 graduates of TRS and the Castrol FR Oceania Championship to test, practice or race a Formula One car in an official session or Grand Prix weekend.