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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLiam Lawson has opened up on the moment that he was confirmed at Racing Bulls in 2026. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLiam Lawson has opened up on the moment that he was confirmed at Racing Bulls in 2026. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
Speaking on the latest episode of the KTM Summer Grill<\/a>, Lawson explained that discussions around his future had been ongoing for several weeks, but clarity only arrived after Qatar<\/a> when he sat down with Racing Bulls team boss Alan Permane.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the final sort of say was after the race in Qatar,\u201d Lawson said.<\/p>\n \u201cI sat down with Alan, which is cool for him to be able to tell me as well that we will be obviously working together next year.\u201d<\/p>\n Lawson said arriving at the final race of the year in Abu Dhabi with certainty over his position helped remove a layer of pressure after what he described as an \u201cintense\u201d season.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been a very busy year. A very intense year,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd to come to this weekend now with obviously that knowledge of next year as well makes it a bit nicer.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m excited to get to work on the challenges of next year.\u201d<\/p>\n The confirmation followed a campaign that produced seven points finishes, with Lawson collecting 38 points and recording several standout results, including a fifth-place finish<\/a> in Baku after qualifying a career-best third<\/a>.<\/p>\n While encouraged by the overall season, which saw the 23-year-old demoted to Racing Bulls after starting with the senior Red Bull team for the first two races, Lawson said the biggest gains came in the second half of the year as consistency improved.<\/p>\n \u201cEven at the start of the year [with Racing Bulls] was already quite good,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI think at the start there was no question of if we were going to have a good result. It wasn\u2019t we were struggling that much, but I think it was just the consistency trying to put it together.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I think that\u2019s something we found in a few ways, but mainly in some stuff that we found in the car.<\/p>\n \u201cMaking it a bit more comfortable for me to drive around Austria. That made a big difference.\u201d<\/p>\n Liam Lawson holds off Yuki Tsunoda and Lando Norris during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n With the current regulation cycle ending, Lawson acknowledged there are elements of the existing cars he will miss as the sport heads into a new era in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cThe speed mainly,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the speed has been, you know, the end of any era of regulations obviously the cars are fully developed. And right now as sometimes uncomfortable as they are to drive, they\u2019re very, very fast.<\/p>\n \u201cSo that\u2019ll be something that I think is going to be a bit of a change probably going into next year from where we start.\u201d<\/p>\n He added that his exposure to the 2026 cars had been limited to simulator work, with the team focused on the fight for sixth in the constructors\u2019 championship in the closing races \u2014 a battle they ultimately won over Aston Martin by just three points.<\/p>\n Lawson\u2019s own points haul in 2025 was the highest by a New Zealand driver since Denny Hulme in 1972, a milestone that has further elevated his profile back home.<\/p>\n Despite that, he said recognition in New Zealand remains relatively understated.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what I like as well about going home. It\u2019s something that I really feel,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, the support is something that I really, I see a lot of obviously, with messages and around even some of these races, which is amazing to see from how far away New Zealand is.<\/p>\n \u201cBut that support I feel, and when I go home and I get to see everybody and those kind of interactions are pretty positive for me.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/XPB_1374657_HiRes.jpg\")
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