Liam Lawson’s life changing year detailed in emotional tell-all documentary

Thursday, 8 February 2024

New Zealand’s newest Formula 1 star’s life changing 12 months has been detailed in an emotional and engaging documentary full of highs, heartbreak and honesty.

Liam Lawson’s infectious smile, that glitters from success, is like a recurring image to Kiwi motorsport fans but for the first time, he has taken his supporters on a deep dive into the other side of the emotional roller-coaster that is a young driver’s journey to Formula 1.

The most challenging year of Lawson’s young life, as he puts it, has been bundled into a 30 minute behind the scenes documentary following his 2023 season through Super Formula in Japan and his F1 debut.

From the rigours of the brutal Red Bull programme, intense travel schedule and the never-ending demands on an F1 driver, the behind the scenes look into Lawson’s crazy 2023 are laid bare.

In a mixture of crushing disappointment, the ecstasy of achieving a life long dream, raw honesty with a mix of humour, the unrestrained Liam Lawson: In the Wings, reveals the true character of the 21-year-old emerging star. A driven athlete who hates losing as much as he loves winning and that happily gave away his childhood to chase a dream many people told him wasn’t possible.

Brutally honest and at times confronting - most especially when his Super Formula championship winning hopes end in tears after a horrifying crash between two rivals cancels the second last race of the season - the documentary airs on Red Bull TV.

Much of the theme of the documentary is around the immense pressure to perform.

Ironically, In the Wings begins with Lawson talking of 2023 being his final chance at Formula 1, filmed well in advance of his F1 debut in the Dutch Grand Prix.

“If I don’t nail this year there’s no way I get another shot,” he says.

However, despite the increased demands of F1 during his life changing five race F1 stint, Lawson didn’t feel any extra expectation as such, because it was no different to his entire career racing with Red Bull.

“It’s always been performance based.

“It’s always been do well and we’ll keep pushing you forward and if you don’t do well, you’re axed, basically.”

Known for being incredibly ruthless, the Red Bull programme is universally regarded as the toughest for young and aspiring F1 drivers but Lawson now admits it’s made him who he is.

“I probably looked at this when I was in my first couple of years and thought it was way too much pressure and too harsh.

“And there’s a fair argument to say it is too harsh, but if you survive those years and you get a chance in Formula 1, it’s honestly exactly what you need to prepare yourself.”

But not even that programme could prepare Lawson for one of the biggest disappointments in his career and the timing of its delivery.

Following his stunning debut (13th) in the most challenging of conditions in the Dutch Grand Prix and then an 11th place finish in Monza, Lawson was told just an hour before qualifying in Singapore that he did not have a seat for the following year.

He would again be a reserve driver in 2024.

It cut deep, his family was there to see him race in F1 for the first time live, his team was hyped, but he couldn’t tell a soul of the devastating news.

Undeterred on the outside but with flames of determination in his belly, Lawson drove to the third and final stage of qualifying - outperforming Red Bull’s three time champion Max Verstappen - for the first time and picked up his first F1 points when finishing ninth in the Singapore Grand Prix.

But following that performance, talk within the F1 paddock and the media ramped up. Frustratingly, Lawson was forced to attend media and fan engagements where he would be constantly asked about his 2024 season, knowing he would be reserve again but not being able to say.

“When you step into Formula 1 you literally have the whole world basically looking at you and you have this incredible amount of pressure to perform.”

For now it’s a waiting game, but at least Lawson will have his 2023 experience to lean on when his next shot comes.

For all the winning, in different countries around the globe during his career, Lawson’s experience following his eleventh hour call up to replace an injured Daniel Ricciardo in The Netherlands, details how nothing can prepare you for the glitz and glamour of F1.

“I walked into the track on the Saturday and there’s just these 20 people, TV cameras following you everywhere, that’s the stuff that you just don’t experience in anything else that you have to be somehow be ready for and prepared for when you step into Formula 1.”