Formula 1: Liam Lawson moves on from Racing Bulls teammate drama after on-track clash
Liam Lawson has moved on from any tension with Racing Bulls teammate Arvid Lindblad, despite the rookie appearing to ignore team orders not to attack the Kiwi during last weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix.
It’s long been said that the first rule of motorsport is not to crash into your teammate.
However, as the two Racing Bulls cars came wheel to wheel on track in Austria last week, Lindblad put the team’s third consecutive double-points finish at risk when he attacked Lawson, who was managing his brakes from overheating in the extreme conditions.
Team radio captured Lawson’s anger after Lindblad defied instruction to “hold position”, where he was heard telling engineer Alexandre Iliopoulos it was the “last f***ing time” he would follow his team’s instruction.
To his credit, Lawson regained his composure and was able to pass Lindblad after the second round of pit stops, as the pair came home to finish ninth and 10th.
In spite of that, though, Lindblad taking actions into his own hands like that should serve as a huge warning.
While Formula One is in every aspect a team sport, individual results and pressures do inevitably lead to tensions between drivers.
Speaking before this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone, though, Lawson insisted the matter had been resolved between himself and Lindblad.
“It honestly wasn’t really much to do with me, and it’s something that was resolved in the race,” he told print media.
“I got my position back, so honestly, by the time we finished the race, I was completely fine.
“It’s something that is obviously part of Formula One, being in a big organisation and a team, so I just tried to do my part in the race, and it was more of their discussion than mine.
“I’m not going to change my approach. Maybe I’ll be more aware in a situation like that. It can be quite rare that you’re in a specific situation like that.
“So it’s very unlikely, but maybe I will be more aware of that.”
Lindblad shared the same view. As the only rookie on the grid, the 18-year-old will take part in his home race for the first time this weekend, and will have to deal with the pressures that come alongside that.
But if Racing Bulls are to continue the success they’ve had all season, having both drivers on the same page is priority No 1 for team bosses over the coming races.
“It was something we discussed together after the race,” said Lindblad. “[It’s] all sorted now.
“[I’m] looking forward to the race this week.”
This year’s British Grand Prix is also a sprint weekend, seeing a shorter 17-lap race take place on Saturday night (NZT), before the full 52-lap affair on Monday morning.
Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.