Liam Lawson's return to Red Bull at the Dutch GP immediately caught attention. Despite finishing only 11th in sprint qualifying, his performance throughout Friday showed significant progress compared to his troubled stint last year. The 0.365s gap to Max Verstappen in that session was respectable, but more importantly, Lawson looked comfortable in the car.
After just one free practice session and a day in the simulator, Lawson appeared far more confident than during his two-event spell with Red Bull last season. In 2024, he struggled to find rhythm, often losing control, and was eventually dropped after the Chinese GP. But at Zandvoort, he showed better handling, especially through the challenging banked corners.
“Honestly, I don’t really know what happened in Q2,” Lawson said, commenting on his failure to reach SQ3. He admitted feeling comfortable in the car, and the failure was more due to lack of experience with the evolving machinery. “I was honestly feeling OK through quali, I thought we'd get through, so it's a shame,” he added.
In SQ1, Lawson was actually convincing, finishing 0.165s ahead of Verstappen in sixth place. However, in SQ2, he failed to improve his lap times as the track evolved—a common weakness for a driver returning. He also ran wide at some corners, dragging the floor across the kerbs, but that didn't diminish the overall positive impression.
Red Bull's decision to bring Lawson back was clearly not without risk. But from today's performance, he showed he deserves this second chance. With the sprint race coming up, Lawson has an opportunity to prove further that he has learned from his past and is ready to compete at the highest level.
Baca Juga
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