Liam Lawson upbeat after P9 points finish in Austin as Racing Bulls defend fifth in the Teams’ Championship

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Liam Lawson described his United States Grand Prix as a weekend where Racing Bulls “executed really well,” after the Racing Bulls driver scored further points in Austin with a ninth-place finish at the Circuit of The Americas. Lawson started from ninth—described as the “best of the rest” behind the Mercedes, Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren cars—and maintained P9 through the race to add to the team’s season tally.

Speaking after the race, the 24-year-old said his result reflects both what the car could deliver at the time and the team’s performance across the event. “When everyone finishes, for us it’s a P9 or a P10 – that’s sort of the best we can do,” Lawson said. “Honestly we executed really well today – we had a great race, so couldn't really do more. Overall it's been a strong weekend.”

Lawson also pointed to a positive sense of consistency as a key reason for his optimism. He said he “felt good all weekend” and credited the current state of the car, adding that he is looking forward to the “unique tracks” ahead in a latest triple-header run of races. “Obviously with Mexico [it’s] very high altitude, and Brazil [is] probably going to be quite bumpy I’m guessing. But yeah, we’re in a good place.”

On the other side of the Racing Bulls garage, Arvid Lindblad faced a more difficult afternoon after being hit with a five-place grid penalty for using additional power unit elements, which dropped him down to P14 for the start. Lindblad ultimately crossed the line in 12th place, leaving him uncertain how to summarise his race overall.

Lindblad explained that early incidents and race management pressures affected his ability to make up ground. “Lap 1 wasn't as good as I'd hoped – obviously I went down the inside, but we all kind of stacked up on top of each other so I wasn't really able to make any ground there,” he said. He added that his first stint was difficult and that later stints were more manageable, but a decision to box early onto the medium tyre played a role in the outcome.

From there, Lindblad said he lost time in traffic during his undercut window situation, before feeling he pushed too hard trying to break free. “Then I tried to get Pierre and probably pushed a bit too hard,” he said, before adding that “it is what it is.” He also commented on strategy limitations, saying he believes he was the only driver attempting a two-stop approach. “I think there were positives, so we'll learn from it,” Lindblad concluded.

Even with the penalty and the less straightforward race, Lindblad said he felt better in the car than at most of the earlier weekend sessions. “I didn't feel very comfortable going into [it] through most of the practices, but then I felt okay in Quali,” he said. “Honestly, I felt pretty good in the race as well – probably one of the best feelings I've had in the race so far this year.”

Lawson’s points finish was also positioned as meaningful for Racing Bulls’ broader campaign goals. The result bolstered the team’s points tally and strengthened its hold on fifth place in the Teams’ Championship, according to the driver’s post-race comments.