Lawson hints he could help Verstappen during Monza qualifying session

Towing tactics have become famous at the Monza circuit over recent years, with teammates working together to improve their lap times with the benefit of slip stream.

Lawson again fills in for Isack Hadjar at Red Bull this weekend, after the Frenchman suffered a wrist injury during the summer break. The New Zealand driver, who has been temporarily promoted from Racing Bulls, impressed with a seventh-place finish in Zandvoort, and could be used to help out team leader Verstappen during Saturday's qualifying session.

Asked by Sky Sports F1 whether 'towing tactics' will come into discussion at Red Bull ahead of qualifying, Lawson responded: "I mean, for sure, it's something we'll we'll discuss, and we'll come up with a plan."

It was a mixed Friday for Lawson who finished fourth in FP1 but 12th in FP2. Asked about how his day went, Lawson responded: "I mean, was it was it was okay. It's been I I would say a productive day. We spent most of FP2 just long running. So we did a short run at the start and felt okay. And then we just did a did two long runs on the soft and and the hard.

Red Bull's long run pace was promising despite Verstappen's hefty list of complaints to his team during FP2. Verstappen sat out FP1 but seemed to have all sorts of issues with his car, lacking balance and grip during FP2.

Verstappen's long run pace averaged a time of 1:26.377 and his deficit to his competitors was not large - although his stint is compared with drivers who ran the hard and soft tyres.

On the hard tyre, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were slower than him, while George Russell and Kimi Antonelli were the two fastest drivers over the long runs in FP2. Ferrari got close to Mercedes, although Leclerc was a touch slower compared to FP1. Red Bull, however, seems to be the team with the most homework for Saturday. They still have one more practice session to get the car in order for qualifying.