“It puts us back a place, so we need to try and move forward tomorrow.”
His best mark of 1m 17.029s was 0.515s off the pace set by Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, who claimed pole position for the first time this season, 0.009s clear of Mercedes’ George Russell.
Hamilton is the oldest driver to secure a pole position since American Mario Andretti in 1982.
Both he and Russell have the mathematical chance to claim the drivers championship this year, however that remains highly unlikely as Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli closes in on the title.
Liam Lawson drives at Mexico’s Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. Photo / AFP
Despite qualifying fifth, 0.193s off Hamilton, the 20-year-old Italian only needs to finish ninth or higher to become the youngest champion in the history of the sport. Antonelli’s hopes will be boosted by Verstappen’s penalty for the Lawson incident, after the former world champion qualified fourth.
Even after posting the fastest times in both Friday practice sessions, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, of Monaco, could only manage the third-fastest time in qualifying.
Meanwhile, Lawson’s British teammate Arvid Lindblad was ninth, 0.088s back from the Kiwi, despite getting an extra practice session on his teammate after Racing Bulls fielded Red Bull rookie Nikola Tsolov in the weekend’s opener.
The Mexican Grand Prix begins at 9am on Monday morning (NZT).
Taking to the track in Q1, Lawson’s first attempt at setting a lap time was wiped out when Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso stopped on track, the Spaniard triggering a red flag that ended the Kiwi’s hope of posting his opening mark.
Once the session resumed, Lawson’s first effort of 1m 18.107s saw him temporarily in the top five. And even as he improved to 1m 18.097s, Lawson dropped down the order to advance as the 12th-fastest car, albeit safe from elimination by 0.533s.
Liam Lawson and Max Verstappen were both punished for an on-track incident in Friday’s second practice session. Photo / Getty Images
Into Q2, Lawson improved again to post a lap of 1m 17.628s to sit inside the top 10, but not safe as other cars began to post faster laps behind him. With pressure on to advance, the Kiwi went even better once again, posting a lap of 1m 17.207s that saw the end of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, as a moral win for New Zealand over Australia.
Needing to finish ninth or higher to earn a top 10 start when the lights go out on Monday, Lawson’s first effort in Q3, 1m 17.357s, was slower than he managed to escape Q2, as Racing Bulls ran their drivers on a used set of tyres.
And staring at a 10th place start, Lawson timing his best effort at the end of Q3 saw him clear not just Lindblad, but Alpine’s Frenchman Pierre Gasly too, to put himself on course for a 14th grand prix points finish of the year.
Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.