Formula 1: Liam Lawson makes social media trolls eat their words with Racing Bulls heroics in Monaco – Opinion

THREE KEY FACTS

• Liam Lawson finished eighth at Formula One’s Monaco Grand Prix.
• The result is the Kiwi’s best in motorsport’s pinnacle.
• Teammate Isack Hadjar claimed sixth in a double-points finish for Racing Bulls.

That might not have been the most exciting race we’ll ever see, but it was exactly what the doctor ordered for Liam Lawson.

After a string of results in which whatever could go against him did, Lawson was afforded a weekend where just about everything went his way.

The result? A career-best result, and stepping up when his team needed him.

However, seasons need to be built on more than one performance. But if what happened in Monte Carlo is anything to go by, this could be the spark that Lawson needs to get 2025 back on track.

Here’s what we learned in Monaco.

Putting the team first

In a sport that celebrates ego, Lawson playing the team game will ultimately be the shining light for Racing Bulls, and Red Bull above them.

New regulations that forced drivers into two pit stops that were intended to add jeopardy to the race failed to yield the desired results and instead forced all 10 teams into a game of cat and mouse.

Racing Bulls, though, did it better than the rest - thanks to Lawson.

Starting ninth, the Kiwi deliberately drove as slow as possible, knowing he couldn’t be overtaken even if cars behind him were faster. As a result, teammate Isack Hadjar was able to get both of his stops out of the way by lap 28, with such a large gap created by Lawson.

Had things gone wrong, Lawson would have sacrificed his whole race, for his teammate, at a time when both drivers should be pushing for promotion in 2026.

That selflessness won’t go unnoticed, even as Lawson continues to push to better Hadjar for the rest of this year.

Liam Lawson at the Monaco Grand Prix. Photo / Red Bull

Enter ‘the shield’

Since replacing Sergio Perez at Red Bull at the end of 2024, Lawson has been the target of fans from Mexico, as well as Japan, Australia and even Spain, on social media.

Given his struggles in adapting to Red Bull’s RB21 in Australia and China, before initially struggling after moving back to Racing Bulls, “Slowson” was the name that Lawson was given by his critics.

Social media vilification is nothing new for Lawson. Since he came back into Formula One last year, he’s copped abuse from Australian Daniel Ricciardo fans, Fernando Alonso’s legion of Spanish supporters, and Japanese followers of Yuki Tsunoda, on top of Perez.

But use of “Slowson” hurt, given how hard Lawson was trying to find his feet, and his confidence, after the most difficult spell of his career.

So how fitting, then, that driving slowly was exactly what Lawson will be celebrated for when remembering Racing Bulls’ masterclass?

A quick peruse of social media immediately after the Grand Prix saw no mention of “Slowson” and instead saw a new moniker handed down to the Kiwi – “the shield”.

Long may it continue. R.I.P. Slowson.

Breathing room

Depending on what you want to believe, this result comes at a time where Lawson’s place at Red Bull was starting to come under pressure.

If he’s not a genuine option for Red Bull to put back into their senior team alongside Max Verstappen, there will be little reason to keep him in the feeder team.

Hadjar’s performances this season probably have him in front if and when Red Bull want to make another change, but Lawson is at the very least keeping himself in the conversation.

Furthermore, the performances of Red Bull-backed Arvid Lindblad in Formula Two haven’t exactly set the world alight, if the team want to throw him in the deep end this year.

Regardless of who partners Verstappen in 2026, Red Bull will want at least one experienced driver at Racing Bulls, with Lindblad likely to step up after one year in Formula Two.

Results like this, though, will do Lawson’s chances a world of good of staying in Red Bull’s ranks, regardless of which team he’s in.

Tsunoda struggles, again

You really just feel sorry for whoever has to fill that second Red Bull seat at the moment.

With Monaco’s results, Lawson’s season-best is now better than Tsunoda’s, after the Japanese driver was backed to be an improvement.

Despite finishing in the points three times since his promotion, Tsunoda sits 13th in the drivers championship, 126 points behind his teammate.

Having crashed and started from the back of the grid in Imola, Tsunoda couldn’t get into the third session in Monaco, and was effectively a spectator as the two junior team drivers outperformed him.

As has been stated many times, Tsunoda is almost certainly on the way out at Red Bull, given his links to exit-bound engine supplier Honda.

Now, though, he has two junior team drivers to worry about taking his job.

Cleared for launch

This has to be a line in the sand moment for Lawson. His objective in returning to Racing Bulls was to get results like this, plural.

Yes, Monaco has been a great weekend for the Kiwi and his team, but it’s gone now. And in a sport where recency bias dictates that you’re only as good as your last race, Lawson won’t be standing still by any means.

Up next, is Barcelona. Like Imola and Monaco over the past two weeks, the Circuit de Catalunya is another where overtaking can be tricky.

For Lawson, Spain is a track where he has had success. In 2020, he finished second in the sprint race there, and beat Piastri in the process.

However, an in-season regulation change will see the 10 teams arrive in Spain with new front wings, which is hoped can narrow the field a tad.

It might catch a few teams out, but it could also be a turning point for more than one outfit at this point of the season.

Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.