Lawson criticised after ‘dangerous’ near-miss with marshals in Mexico

15:29, 30 Oct

byOlly Darcy

Liam Lawson has been blamed by the Mexican motorsport federation for the near-miss that occurred between him and two marshals at the Mexico City Grand Prix.

“The images clearly show that driver Liam Lawson maintains the steering wheel angle of his car when taking Turn 1, without changing his trajectory."

- Mexico's motorsport federation

After a chaotic opening lap to the race, marshals at Turn 1 were sent out to clear up debris that lay across the track.

However, Lawson, who had come into the pits to replace his damaged front wing after the first lap, rejoined the track to find the two marshals still clearing up the track, almost colliding with them as they raced back to their marshalling post.

Despite that near-devastating incident, Mexico's motorsport federation analysed the incident and concluded that the 23-year-old did not drive appropriately during the incident.

Liam Lawson's near miss with the Mexico City Grand Prix marshals - Photo: Race Pictures

“It should be noted that the Racing Bulls team informed the driver that there was debris on the track and that this section was under a double yellow flag, so that he should take extreme precautions when driving through the area,” a statement from the federation explained.

“Therefore, at that moment, the driver had to significantly reduce his speed, refrain from overtaking, and be prepared to stop if necessary, in compliance with current safety regulations.

“When analysing the sequence from the camera on board the car, it can be seen that driver Liam Lawson, as he approaches Turn 1, begins to turn to take the racing line, at which point the presence of the track marshals is clearly visible as they carry out their intervention procedures to collect the pieces that had been left behind as a result of the previous contact.

Lawson 'did not interrupt his line despite the presence of marshals'

“The proximity of the car to the work area shows that the track marshals were still active within the risky area, performing cleaning and safety tasks on the circuit," continued the statement.

“The images clearly show that driver Liam Lawson maintains the steering wheel angle of his car when taking Turn 1, without changing his trajectory, even though the track marshals were crossing the track to return to their post.

“This action occurs while personnel were still working in the area, which shows that the driver did not interrupt his line despite the obvious presence of marshals on the track.”

FIA to have discussions after Mexico City mania

After the Grand Prix around the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Lawson slammed the incident, calling it "dangerous" and saying that he "couldn't believe what he was seeing".

It wasn't just Lawson that had complaints about the FIA and race control's handling of Turn 1 in Mexico City, with Lewis Hamilton lamenting "double standards" that he believed occurred during the wild start to the 71-lap race.

Talks about Turn 1 incidents between the FIA and teams on the grid are set to take place, however, with Aston Martin's Chief Trackside Officer, Mike Krack, stating that these are "being discussed".

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