Liam Lawson's Tense Battle with Charles Leclerc in Brazil

Liam Lawson left São Paulo with points, a bruising wheel tap from Charles Leclerc, and a lingering question over where the line is drawn in hard racing.

The Racing Bulls driver, still fighting for his F1 future, had spent the closing laps locked in a tense defence against the Ferrari. Leclerc, chasing seventh place, dived in close at Turn 12 and clipped the left-rear of Lawson’s car, unsettling the Kiwi just enough to prise open the door.

Both drivers have been summoned to the stewards, with Leclerc classified seventh and Lawson less than two seconds behind in eighth. No major damage, no puncture, no retirement. But it was right on the edge.

“I think it was his wing that hit my tyre. So I think we got really lucky,” Lawson said afterwards, still processing the move and the outcome. The moment triggered a flashback in his mind.

He’d seen this before.

Back in 2017, in GP2 at Abu Dhabi, Leclerc made almost the same move on Alex Albon at the hairpin. A nudge to the left-rear, Albon’s momentum broken, Leclerc through and on to win. Lawson felt history had repeated itself in Brazil.

“I feel like it was exactly like his GP2 move to Abu Dhabi, like on [Alex] Albon years ago,” he said. “He did the same kind of thing, so maybe it’s his specialty. I don’t know if it’s legal or not. We’ll obviously go and review it, but it was a good battle overall.”

The contact overshadowed what had been one of Lawson’s sharpest drives yet.

When the lights went out, he launched. From the pack into clear air, the Racing Bulls car leapt into second place, Lawson finding grip where others floundered through Turn 1. For a brief, electric spell he wasn’t just defending the midfield; he was hunting the race leader, Kimi Antonelli.

“I mean, crazy race,” Lawson said. “Honestly, I had a really good start, good grip in Turn 1. Obviously, I made up a place, and then, to be honest, I was thinking I might try and attack Kimi at some point in the lap.”

That fantasy didn’t last long. Once the field settled, the reality of pace and tyre life bit hard. Antonelli and the front-runners stretched away. Racing Bulls began to slide backwards.

“But once the pace stabilised, they’re a lot quicker than us, and we started to fall back. We were damaging our tyres, quite a lot more than they were,” Lawson admitted. “I think the pace on the dry was okay.”

The race evolved, the track dried, and Lawson’s afternoon turned from opportunistic charge to gritty defence. The Ferrari in his mirrors grew larger, the margin smaller. He dug in, trying to keep Leclerc behind, knowing every point matters for both his team and his own future.

“And then at the end, yeah, I tried to keep Charles there. We had some contact in [Turn] 12. I’ll go and review it. I don’t really know exactly what to say yet, but obviously I ended up losing the place.”

Eighth place, on paper, is a “normal” result for a Racing Bulls car. The way Lawson got there was anything but. A start that briefly promised a podium fight, a long, disciplined stint in a car chewing through its tyres, and a late scrap with a Ferrari that will now be pored over frame by frame.

He walked away convinced he’d squeezed everything out of the package.

“I had a strong race. I would have liked it to stay wet the whole race. It would have been cool. Probably would have had more of a shot there,” he said. The changing conditions took away some of the chaos that might have elevated him further. “But, at the moment, we’re topping the midfield as a team, and that’s what we’re targeting every weekend.”

That line carries weight. Racing Bulls are not fighting for titles; they are fighting for relevance, prize money, and leverage inside the wider Red Bull structure. Lawson is doing the same.

Right now, he has no confirmed seat for F1 2027. His performances have been sharp, consistent, and increasingly eye-catching, but the team has yet to commit. Formula 2 driver Nikola Tsolov is pushing hard for that spot, and the decision looms over every lap Lawson turns.

A call is expected before the end of the season. It may leave Lawson, despite a standout campaign, watching from the sidelines next year.

He knows the paddock is talking. He can feel the groundswell of support.

“I appreciate all the support I’ve seen over the last few weeks,” he said. “It’s honestly really nice to see. Obviously I would love it if it was more from a team, but, at the moment, I’m just trying to enjoy driving the car because, with everything else going on, I don’t really know what else you know I’m meant to do.

“I don’t know what else I meant to say to you guys. So, at the moment, I’m just going to keep driving and see what happens.

“Obviously, they’ll decide what they do there. I feel like Alan’s been extremely supportive to me, and I appreciate that a lot, and have enjoyed working closely with them and the team this year.

“But, yeah, obviously it’s [Red Bull] a big organisation.”

So Lawson leaves Brazil with points in his pocket, a steward’s visit on his schedule, and his future still hanging in the balance. He can’t control the politics. He can control moments like Turn 1, the charge to second, and the refusal to yield easily to a Ferrari.

If Racing Bulls are truly chasing the top of the midfield, the question now is simple: can they really afford to let a driver like that go?