Lawson takes seventh on Red Bull return at Dutch Grand Prix
Words: Kyle Cassidy
Liam Lawson has marked his unexpected return to Red Bull Racing with a solid seventh-place finish at the Dutch Grand Prix, while Lando Norris claimed his second Formula 1 victory in a row.
Called up to replace the injured Isack Hadjar, Lawson kept out of trouble during an eventful race at Zandvoort that was red-flagged following Max Verstappen’s opening-lap crash.
It was the New Zealander’s first appearance for Red Bull in 16 months, having been demoted to Racing Bulls early last season. While seventh represented a respectable result at short notice, Lawson was frustrated that he couldn’t challenge the leading group.
“It was a pretty lonely race for me today, I just struggled to match the pace of the guys in front,” Lawson said.
“It was a pretty lonely race for me today. We just didn’t have the pace to fight with the guys in front so it was tricky,” Lawson said.
“I’m happy I got points for the team. I knew coming into the weekend it’d be difficult, especially at a circuit like Zandvoort, where you need a lot of confidence in the car, but I feel like we extracted everything we could. It was a shame to see what happened to Max.
“That part of the track was incredibly slippery and on slick tyres it was so easy to lose the car there. I was right behind him, so it was a pretty scary moment. I’m glad he’s okay. It’s never easy stepping into an entirely new car, but the team did a good job in making me feel comfortable and I’m grateful for the opportunity.”
Lawson and Verstappen had both struggled during qualifying, with neither Red Bull driver able to break into the top six. That left Lawson realistic about his prospects heading into the race, although the size of the performance gap still surprised him.
Lawson’s clean drive became particularly valuable after Verstappen crashed on the opening lap in front of his home crowd. The incident brought out the red flag and forced a restart, leaving Lawson as Red Bull’s only remaining hope of scoring points.
At the front, Norris recovered from losing the lead to Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli at the restart to take his second consecutive victory following his success in Hungary.
The result also gave McLaren its third straight Dutch Grand Prix win. Norris won at Zandvoort in 2024, before teammate Oscar Piastri took victory last season.
Antonelli finished second to extend his championship advantage to 59 points after 12 rounds. The 19-year-old now has 242 points, while Mercedes teammate George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton are tied on 183.
Russell completed the podium after following team orders and allowing Antonelli, who was running on fresher tyres, to pass late in the race. Russell then resisted pressure from Hamilton to hold third place.
Hamilton settled for fourth, ahead of Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc and McLaren’s Piastri. Lawson followed in seventh, with Nico Hulkenberg eighth for Audi.
Fernando Alonso returned Aston Martin to the points in ninth, while Pierre Gasly secured the final point for Alpine in 10th.
Norris’ victory also continued Zandvoort’s unusual record, with every Formula 1 race held at the circuit since its 2021 return having been won from pole position. With the Dutch Grand Prix set to disappear from the calendar for the foreseeable future, that streak could stand for some time.
