Lawson praises Verstappen: 'He was the only one who helped me back then'

Midway through the 2023 season, Liam Lawson replaced Daniel Ricciardo for a number of races. In an interview with Fox Sports Australia, he talks about how Max Verstappen was a big help to him at the time and what his goals are at the moment.

During a free practice sessions at Zandvoort, Daniel Ricciardo broke his metacarpal in a crash. This allowed Liam Lawson to take the wheel of the AlphaTauri for a number of races. 

Verstappen was very helpful

Lawson says in the interview that Max Verstappen was one of the few drivers who helped him prior to his first Grand Prix. "He's actually a really nice guy out of the car. I think he can come across quite aggressive on TV, but he's just ultra competitive and he's a really, really good guy. When I drove last year, he was one of the few guys that were really open to talk and give advice. He came in and he said 'make sure you enjoy it, try and remember to enjoy it'. He was really good and open to giving advice. So it's cool to obviously be able to have that, but also to be able to learn from him. Obviously, his driving is very, very good right now. To see all that data and basically learn from that is pretty cool."

At the moment, there seem to be openings to drive for Red Bull. Sergio Perez, for instance, does not yet have a contract for next year and Daniel Ricciardo's place at the Visa Cash App RB team also seems uncertain. For Lawson, driving for Red Bull is still his goal. "The dream is to drive with Red Bull. I've been with them now for more than five years. They're the most competitive team in Formula 1 right now. So, if I could choose, I would drive for them. My dream is to be in Formula 1. If it can't be with them, then, obviously, I'd try to make that happen with somebody else."