Liam Lawson 2026 F1 season

The story so far

New Zealander Liam Lawson, driving for Racing Bulls, finished in the top 10 in both Friday practice sessions at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia, placing eighth and then ninth.^{1 Oct} In qualifying, Lawson missed the final session by just over 0.2 seconds and took 11th, narrowly behind Gabriel Bortoleto.^{3 Oct} Max Verstappen secured pole position for the race.^{3 Oct} In the rain-hit race, which the story calls the Bahrain Grand Prix, Lawson started 11th and climbed as high as fourth.^{4 Oct}

Latest

Lawson finished seventh in the race, returning to the points.^{4 Oct} He dropped back from his peak of fourth as the track dried.^{4 Oct}

Key moments

1. 1 OctLawson places eighth and ninth in Friday practice at Sepang
2. 3 OctLawson misses final qualifying session by just over 0.2 seconds, takes 11th
3. 3 OctVerstappen secures pole position
4. 4 OctLawson climbs to fourth in the rain-hit race
5. 4 OctLawson finishes seventh and returns to the points

Written from the stories below; each sentence links to its sources.