New Zealand F1 driver Liam Lawson. Photo: ANTONIN VINCENT / AFP
With four rounds remaining, the heat is back on New Zealand driver Liam Lawson to get back into the points and finish the Formula 1 season strongly.
Lawson has arrived for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil after a dry spell that has again thrown a question mark over him securing a seat in 2026.
The 23-year-old has failed to pick up points in his last three races.
In his last outing in Mexico, he was hit in the opening lap and eventually forced to retire.
Lawson had been in a good position after a run of good results mid-season.
Apart from his fifth place in Azerbaijan in September, the Racing Bulls team have struggled in the last half a dozen Grand Prix races, and have slipped well behind Williams in the race for fifth place in the Constructors' Championship.
Red Bull had initially decided to name their 2026 line-up following the Mexico Grand Prix, but then announced they would wait until the end of the season.
Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda and Arvid Lindblad appear to be battling for two seats.
In wet conditions in Brazil last year Lawson qualified fifth, and despite being hit by Oscar Piastri during the race he still managed to finish ninth.
Sao Paulo also has a sprint race and the Kiwi is hopeful that Racing Bulls can rebound and return to the points for the first time since Baku.
"We hope so," Lawson told media in Brazil.
"I think we've had a reasonably strong car over most of the year. We had a strong car in Mexico, less strong in the race, but I didn't get to race anyway.
"So the potential is being there every weekend, we just need to execute and try and have a good weekend. We have an opportunity with the Sprint, so two sessions where we can try and get some points, and that's the target."
Liam Lawson and Lewis Hamilton during the 2024 Brazil Grand Prix. Photo: FLORENT GOODEN / PHOTOSPORT
Some rain is forecast for the first two days with dry conditions on Grand Prix day.
Lawson had his first ever outing at the iconic Interlagos Circuit last year.
"It was a super intense weekend with crazy weather, so I expect there could be a chance of that again," Lawson said.
"They've resurfaced the track, so this is something we'll all need to account for following last year's bumpy conditions. As a team, we'll be optimising our car to make it as strong as possible this weekend."
It has been a lean few weeks for the Racing Bulls team, with Isack Hadjar - who is predicted to join Max Verstappen in the senior Red Bull team in 2026 - picking up just two points in his last five races.
That then puts the pressure on the team, which has admitted that they have struggled for pace at times, while some of their race strategies have failed to get the required result.
Following Mexico, team principal Alan Permane admitted they had some hard work to do following a tough couple of weeks in the Americas.
New Zealand driver Liam Lawson takes a quick break. Brazil GP, 2024. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The variation in weather and therefore track conditions will put added pressure on grip giving the team plenty to think about with choice of tyres and down force settings.
"We will make sure we put all our recent learning on car balance and utilisation to do our best to hit the ground running," said Racing Bulls chief technical officer Tim Goss.
Interlagos is one of the few tracks in the championship which runs counter-clockwise.
The last three GP's are in Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Lawson sits 15th in the Drivers' Championship.
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