Lawson among F1 points

Liam Lawson made an impressive start in his bid for a full-time Formula 1 drive after going from the back of the field to finishing ninth in the United States Grand Prix for the Racing Bulls (RB) team.

The New Zealander’s effort matched the ninth spot he claimed in Singapore while stepping in for Honda for five races last year when Australian Daniel Ricciardo was out with a broken hand.

Lawson, pictured, has now replaced Ricciardo in the Red Bull development team and has five more races in 2024 to convince bosses to hire him for a full campaign next year.

He started from 19th on the grid in Texas on October 21 (NZ time) after RB incurred engine penalties but he had moved up to 14th by the end of the first lap.

The Kiwi maintained his progress through the field and was up to seventh after 30 laps but dropped a couple of places after a late pit stop.

Finishing ninth gave him two championship points and he also bettered his teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who was 14th.

“Holy s***, how did we do that,” Lawson said to his team after the race. “Good job, thank you everybody. It was just a really complete car.”

Charles Leclerc won the race for Ferrari from his teammate Carlos Sainz, with championship leader and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen completing the podium.

Lawson told Sky Sport that finishing in the points from where they started was “very cool”.

“Strategy-wise I was planning on just taking it easy at the start but everything happened and opportunities opened up and I knew from that point we were in a good position on a good tyre and it came to us,” he added.

Formula 1 returns to action with the Mexico Grand Prix on October 28 (NZ time).