Liam Lawson

From the small city of Hastings on New Zealand's North Island, Liam Lawson built his reputation the hard way — competing across an unusually wide range of championships simultaneously, proving his adaptability and nerve at every level. After claiming national titles back home, he progressed into the European junior ranks, becoming a front-runner in Formula 2 while simultaneously racing in the German DTM championship in 2021, narrowly missing the DTM title in controversial circumstances. His range across completely different machinery set him apart from the crowd and earned him a place in the Red Bull junior programme.

His Formula 1 debut in 2023 arrived unexpectedly when he was called up as a substitute for an injured Daniel Ricciardo at AlphaTauri. Across five races, he delivered mature, impressive performances — highlighted by outqualifying Verstappen at Singapore — that made the paddock sit up and take immediate notice. After a turbulent start to the 2025 season at Red Bull, he returned to Racing Bulls and re-established himself as a consistent points scorer, earning further credibility as a senior Red Bull emergency call-up mid-2026 when Hadjar suffered a wrist injury.

Aggressive, adaptable, and unshakeable under pressure, Lawson is New Zealand's most credible chance of a Formula 1 Grand Prix winner since the golden era of Denny Hulme.