As they progress through promotional formulas, drivers encounter a moment when they realize that they have the level required to compete in F1. For Liam Lawson, who has competed in 11 Grands Prix and will ride alongside Max Verstappen this year, that moment arrived during his first weekend at the top, at Zandvoort in 2023.
“I think for me it happened at Zandvoort when I got behind the wheel for the first time and competed in a Grand Prix” Lawson remembers. “I would say it was straight away in the race, when you're fighting with the cars, it's something you know, mentally as a driver.
“We do all the preparation and everything like that before a session but, the second the lights go out, you fall into a state of mind where it's the same state of mind that you were competing in Formula 1 or go kart racing in New Zealand.”
“It's the same mindset you have when you go into a race. I would say it hasn't changed since I was a kid, I always thought I was capable of becoming a Formula 1 driver .”
Lawson is confident in his work, and he doesn't think this confidence is a given, but rather something innate: “I think it's something you're born with or you're not. I mean I'm lucky to be born with it, and I've always had that belief.”
“I think whether you're fighting in the middle or at the front of the pack, to be quite honest, it's no different… the performance, as a driver, that we try to achieve during the course. of a race weekend is the best possible performance we can do.”
“In a qualifying session, it's the best possible lap you can do. Whether you're in a top team or a mid-table team, you can only place your car up to a certain point on the grid.”
“But as long as you finish this round and feel like you've done the best job possible at the end of the weekend, then your result will be whatever it will be. If we look at Qatar, for example, I “I feel like in qualifying, honestly, especially in Sprint qualifying, it was the best possible job I could have done.”
“But then we look at a session in Brazil where it's raining and we're now in the top five and stuff like that, it changes. So I think in a top car the approach is the same. You try to do and perform the best job possible. The only thing that changes is where you are.”
