If Formula One is a game of musical chairs, Liam Lawson is circling motorsport’s top table and ready to pounce on an open seat.
The pacey and ambitious young New Zealand driver puts rubber to new roads this weekend when Super Formula series fires up in the foothills of MtFuji.
Lawson will be switching gears constantly throughout the next few months, though – jet-setting between Japan and many other corners of the globe to also fulfil his duties as the official reserve driver for the powerhouse Red Bull F1 team.
Having steadily nudged his way up to F1′s back bumper in recent times, he now appears closer than ever to cracking the big time.
In the often unpredictable environment that is one of world sport’s blue-riband competitions, where under-performing drivers are constantly on notice, the 21-year-old Pukekohe racer is ready for anything to happen at any time.
Lawson’s point about Super Formula is worth noting.
To the casual observer, his move into the series may have seemed curious after a pair of seasons in Formula Two, the official feeder category to the top flight.
But one of the major players in the Red Bull Racing hierarchy, Dr Helmut Marko, has openly stated Japan’s top open-wheel category is a good proving ground for drivers hoping to transition to F1.
It’s an assertion Lawson very much agrees with after two test sessions in the high-powered Super Formula machines.
“Definitely, and it’s where Red Bull has sent their drivers in the past.
“[French F1 driver] Pierre Gasly came here and they’ve sent quite a few Red Bull guys here in preparation for F1.
“It’s a lot closer than Formula Two is to Formula One. I was blown away by the car in the first test I did. It’s a really good option to come here.”
Liam Lawson during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Saudi Arabia in March. Photo / Getty Images
At the same time, Lawson knows it won’t be a Sunday drive as one of the few non-Japanese drivers in the series.
The quality of his rivals, and the big advantage they have when it comes to knowledge of the circuits, means he’s not necessarily expecting to be fighting at the front in the opening couple of rounds.
It’s a challenge magnified by the added responsibilities of his F1 reserve role, though he’s optimistic he can add to the three Grand Prix practice drives he got in 2022.
“I’m definitely hoping so, but nothing’s been confirmed yet in terms of what races and things like that.
“Right now I’m not 100 per cent sure, but I’m definitely hopeful that at some point this year I’ll be back in a Formula One car.”
Either way, Lawson will be spending plenty more time in the F1 paddock.
It’s a place that’s becoming ever more familiar, to the point where he featured several times in the fifth and most recent series of F1′s smash-hit Netflix series Drive to Survive.
Any buzz about an ever-increasing standing in the sport, though, is balanced by a determination to achieve his dream.
“It’s a little bit normal now. Yeah, I’m more used to it.
“I’d rather be in Drive to Survive as a Formula One driver rather than sort of an add-on, but it’s definitely cool to see.”
The good news for Lawson, and the swag of Kiwi supporters willing him on, is that the time may not be very far away.
Round one of the Super Formula season at Fuji Speedway features two races, the first starting at 5.15pm on Saturday and the second at 5.30pm on Sunday.
