Liam Lawson proved to everyone that he's worth a main seat in the Formula One grid.
When I said that Liam Lawson deserved his stopgap return to Red Bull back in August, I was just thinking about the incredible work he has done in the midfield for the Racing Bulls. At that point, Lawson had 43 points to his name, which was the most for the midfield drivers.
But after three races in Red Bull's main seat, the Kiwi driver quickly proved to everyone that he can produce for a front-running car.
Lawson makes immediate impact at Zandvoort
Three races is not a small sample size, especially if you're in Lawson's situation. Having driven for Racing Bulls before the Isack Hadjar injury, Lawson was immediately plugged into the Red Bull seat for the Dutch Grand Prix.
The car was a whole new experience for Lawson, plus he had to take into account the new regulations. He had to learn on the go, adapting his style to the Red Bull car in a Sprint weekend where there is only one practice session.
For context, F1 drivers do a separate series of shakedown tests and pre-season testing in January and February to get a full grasp of their new cars before the season begins in March.
Lawson didn't have the luxury of having those test sessions with Red Bull. And yet, he made an immediate impact in the Netherlands. He qualified P8 right behind teammate Max Verstappen.
However, Verstappen crashed in the opening lap at Zandvoort, leaving Lawson as the sole Red Bull driver in the running. He stepped up to the plate, putting in a consistent drive to finish seventh.
The bounce-back at Madrid
Lawson failed to score the next race at Monza, where he only mustered a 14th-place finish.
But the Kiwi driver quickly bounced back at Madrid, qualifying P8 and taking the checkered flag in sixth place.
Lawson made a self-assessment of his stint as a replacement driver for Red Bull, saying that it has been "three strong weekends." Although he would have liked to score at Monza, he said that he is proud of these three races.
The pressure shifts to Hadjar
Now, the pressure is on for French driver Isack Hadjar. It's still unclear if he can fully recover from his wrist injury and return at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but Lawson's excellent string of performances leaves Hadjar with plenty to work on.
To be fair, Hadjar was consistently good before his unfortunate injury. But let's see how quickly he can get into his groove when he returns, hopefully, at Baku.
