When Pink Bull determined who to go Components 1’s poisoned chalice to for 2025, one issue outweighed all others in choosing Liam Lawson as Max Verstappen’s teammate. Efficiency mattered, however extra vital was the sturdy mindset required to thrive the place his predecessors have failed. It’s a logical criterion to prioritize, however one probably resulting in different issues given the mentality intrinsic to any profitable racing driver.
It’s an exaggeration to say Verstappen is a career-killer given Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon rose once more in F1, albeit to diminished heights, whereas Sergio Perez is licking his wounds forward of a attainable return in 2026, however all of them sustained heavy harm from sharing a storage with him. Racing historical past is stuffed with succesful drivers made to look third-rate by direct comparability to an all-time nice, however Pink Bull believes – or maybe extra precisely, hopes – Lawson has what it takes to keep away from that destiny. The New Zealander, at 22 and with simply 11 grand prix begins sprinkled throughout two seasons below his belt, is seen as sufficiently broad-shouldered to hold the load of what has develop into an not possible task.
The query of an athlete’s mindset is way mentioned and widely known as a significant part of their sporting make-up, but it’s additionally poorly outlined and difficult to research and check besides via trial by hearth in competitors. Lawson has proved he’s assured, carrying himself with an smug swagger typical of many top-level grand prix drivers each inside and out of doors of the automobile. His CV is gentle on titles – the 2019 Toyota Racing Collection is his most illustrious championship win in automobiles – however consists of wins in any respect ranges. Usually, he begins strongly, which helps the notion he’s by no means overawed by a step up. Nonetheless, there’s a suspicion his development then plateaus.
Pink Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko has set an unambiguous goal for Lawson, who “must be inside three-tenths of Max in each qualifying and the race,” together with contributing the factors wanted to win the constructors’ championship and the expectation “he also needs to steadily enhance his efficiency – if attainable.” These are broadly the identical set of aims Gasly, Albon and Perez failed to realize, for whereas Perez contributed to constructors’ titles in 2022 and ’23, these had been in seasons the place Pink Bull had a major efficiency benefit. When it was shut in ’21 and ’24, he value it. Lawson’s problem is to keep away from being a weak hyperlink.
Marko additionally claims Lawson’s “psychological power tipped the scales.” Whereas he and Pink Bull crew principal Christian Horner aren’t at all times on the identical web page in terms of the decision-making course of, they’re aligned right here.
“What has actually stood out with him has been his angle and his capability to take care of stress,”says Horner. “All of the rookies seemed slightly bit like rookies in Brazil . Liam didn’t drop the automobile, he didn’t make any errors. He’s seemed a seasoned campaigner. For those who take a look at his performances, he’s agile as nicely. We put him in a DTM automobile for a 12 months alongside Alex Albon; he was very fast. He races arduous, and he’s received broad shoulders. You want that to be in that seat.
“Liam has received the appropriate character to have the ability to deal with the stress of being Max’s teammate and the expectations on him are very clear. We’re not anticipating him to beat Max, Max is a generational expertise. The target is to get as shut as he can and bag as many factors as he can, in order that we don’t have a 285-point deficit between the automobiles.”
This sounds promising and it’s conceivable Lawson might settle into this position comfortably, turning into Eddie Irvine to Verstappen’s Michael Schumacher. When Irvine signed as much as be Schumacher’s teammate, he knew it was as quantity two and really publicly embraced it, ending his four-year stint at Maranello with a quartet of grand prix wins and an unsuccessful tilt on the world championship in ’99. However Irvine is a rarity; extra typically the psychology is that of the usurper – doubly so for the reason that “grasp and apprentice” strategy that after held sway in grand prix racing light away many years in the past.
Lawson will say all the appropriate issues and head into a tricky season along with his eyes open. Intellectually, he’ll embrace the mission of being Verstappen’s wing man, however he can be conflicted. Racing drivers, a minimum of those who make it to this stage on benefit, are aggressive beasts normally with the utter conviction they will beat anybody. Their careers are constructed upon the expectation they may get within the automobile and be quicker, higher, extra profitable than each driver they face. The conviction will be whittled away at by time for world-weary campaigners, however not somebody of Lawson’s age. There’s little doubt that his mentality received’t simply be of being a superb quantity two – deep down, he’ll consider he can depose Verstappen.
Lawson is an abrasive competitor and in his six 2024 outings earned himself a popularity for being a tricky rival in wheel-to-wheel fight. Whereas happenstance meant he typically crossed paths with Perez, there’s no query he knew the importance of battles with the driving force he was in competition to exchange. Slightly than being cowed by this, he backed himself and wasn’t afraid of risking irritating his paymasters by displaying that this was his time. Marko, specifically, may have beloved this strategy.
Verstappen is a totally totally different proposition to Perez, however Lawson will see him as simply one other skittle to be knocked down in his profession development. The simplest quantity two drivers are normally those that don’t know – or fairly haven’t accepted –that is their lot in life. Valtteri Bottas exemplified this at Mercedes, coming again yearly decided to barge Lewis Hamilton out of his crew chief position and repeatedly failing. Ideally, you desire a driver who can preserve dusting themselves down and get again up once more as a result of they may get the very best from themselves and preserve their teammate on their toes. However this could’t final without end and finally such resolve is eroded.
The impact might be delayed for Lawson given he maybe can hark again to the outdated days of studying from a star driver because of Verstappen being courted by rival groups forward of a attainable transfer away from Pink Bull. Have been that to occur for ’26 then Lawson can fulfill himself by being shut sufficient this 12 months to be seen as a reputable crew chief sooner or later. Nonetheless, that’s a slender set of circumstances, contingent on components outdoors of his management.
Each empire falls. Nice drivers seem like omnipotent entities who will eternally prevail, till all of the sudden in the future they aren’t. They survive assault from numerous rivals however finally, for no matter purpose, can be deposed. Lawson should consider he will be that agent of change as a result of that comes with the territory of his robust mindset, which can be based upon the understanding he will be higher than anybody.
Objectively, that is massively bold and there’s no purpose to consider Lawson can pull it off. Actually, the proof of his profession factors to a driver who is nice fairly than nice – that means he has the power to have a protracted and completed grand prix profession, however not a Verstappen-beating one. Nonetheless, the mentality of drivers isn’t, and in some ways can’t, be so goal when it comes to placing a ceiling on their potential. In the event that they did, would any ever set foot on the trail to F1, given the ludicrously lengthy odds of constructing it?
Let’s say Lawson does do higher than that three-tenths deficit and in some way begins pushing Verstappen, then he can be minded to maneuver in for the kill. This implies all of the qualities which have helped him get there might develop into an issue for Pink Bull – the killer intuition, the self-confidence, the sturdy mentality. Unlikely as it’s, it’s not totally not possible.
The corollary is he experiences what nearly each driver does finally – the psychological battering of being straight in comparison with somebody emphatically higher than you. Due to this fact, Pink Bull wants Lawson to string the needle – he must be shut sufficient to contribute with out being an issue however not fall into confusion and despondency. Verstappen teammates have a behavior of getting misplaced, and if that occurs it’s a tough wilderness to search out your manner out of. The draw back of a rock-solid mentality is, in case you are destabilized, you may fall far and shortly.
Pink Bull has determined Lawson is the very best candidate for the job, or a minimum of from amongst its present steady. You might argue it’s making the identical outdated mistake by swinging again to selling an inexperienced younger driver, working a threat of a repeat of the failure of Gasly and Albon. Horner is smart sufficient to just accept there’s a threat of this, however once more argues Lawson is totally different.
“The hazard is there’s a repeat of that, however Liam is a unique character,” says Horner. “He’s a unique persona, in a position to take care of the stress. He’s proven an actual resilience and power of character with the chance that’s been offered. And he drives the automobile similarly to Max, he doesn’t shrink back from having a really optimistic entrance finish within the automobile. So when it comes to driving traits, it is going to be simpler for the automobiles to run extra carefully collectively in set-up.”
Horner’s level about driving type is vital as too typically its quantity twos have develop into misplaced in set-up experiments. A driver’s tolerances outline how one can develop and run a automobile and Verstappen, like Schumacher, likes a sharp automobile on turn-in. The quickest automobile theoretically will at all times have that instability on turn-in however requires the driving force to have a really exact really feel and talent to proactively management the rear.
Verstappen was confounded at occasions final 12 months when restricted by understeer as a result of it imposed an easier-to-access however decrease restrict of the automobile. Nonetheless, the query is whether or not Lawson actually can match that type. He does wish to push the rotation within the entries and due to this fact a rear finish with a level of instability, however he should keep away from falling into the entice of attempting to realize that with late braking. Gasly suffered from that, typically braking later than Verstappen, affected by under-rotation in consequence, then complaining of an absence of traction in nook exits as a result of he was successfully driving an extended nook.
Lawson will be taught a lot from Verstappen, not solely when it comes to the best way to be fast but in addition the artwork of tire administration. It’s unclear simply how powerful a problem he’ll face this season given it stays to be seen how aggressive Pink Bull is after its 2024 troubles. However one factor is definite – Lawson heads into the brand new season with absolute confidence and a certainty that he received’t articulate publicly that he will be the one to defeat Verstappen.
Lawson would by no means have made it this far if he didn’t. However for all of Pink Bull’s confidence in him, there’s no manner of figuring out how he’ll actually reply to what could be a punishing scenario for many drivers. His psychological power won’t ever have been examined like this earlier than and given it’s vanishingly unlikely he’ll be capable to ship on the hopes of usurping F1’s high canine, which might deliver its personal issues, even Lawson received’t actually know the way he’ll stand as much as it.
All we will know for certain is that proper now, earlier than the truth of the combat units in, he can be quietly assured that he can flip this tough alternative right into a career-making one. And that basic reality signifies that if, or extra realistically when, he can’t, no one is aware of how he’ll reply.
