Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson has opened up about the challenges he faced during the Miami Grand Prix, which ended prematurely for the young New Zealander. After his retirement from the race, Lawson provided a candid assessment of the weekend, pointing to fundamental performance issues that hampered his efforts from the very start.
Lawson explained that his primary focus during the opening laps was simply to navigate the initial chaos and keep his car in contention. However, he quickly realized that the team was struggling with a significant pace deficit compared to their rivals. The driver noted that the car's balance felt problematic from the early stages, making it difficult to push and maintain a competitive speed.
The situation took a definitive turn for the worse on the seventh lap. Lawson was forced to retire from the race due to a gearbox failure. This mechanical issue occurred following an on-track collision with Pierre Gasly, which likely contributed to the terminal damage that ended his Grand Prix prematurely.
Reflecting on the broader picture, Lawson acknowledged that the team had been outperformed in terms of overall pace throughout the entire race weekend. He emphasized that simply trying to 'chase the car' and react to its handling characteristics was not enough to overcome the underlying speed disadvantage they faced against the competition.
Despite the disappointing result, Lawson struck a cautiously optimistic note about the future. He mentioned that the team has a number of upgrades and new developments planned for the car over the course of the season. He views this development pipeline as a positive factor that could help close the performance gap.
However, the driver also tempered this optimism with a dose of realism. He pointed out that rival teams will also be bringing their own updates and improvements to their cars. Therefore, for Racing Bulls to make meaningful progress and move up the competitive order, Lawson stressed that their rate of improvement needs to be more substantial and effective than that of their competitors.
The Miami weekend serves as a clear indicator of the work that lies ahead for the Racing Bulls squad. Lawson's post-race comments highlight a team that is aware of its shortcomings and is looking to its development program to provide the necessary performance gains in the coming races.
Based on reporting from Чемпионат.com.
