Liam Lawson’s Singapore Grand Prix hopes hang by a thread after a dramatic crash in the third practice session. The Racing Bulls rookie collided with the barriers at Turn 7, resulting in a red flag and a frantic race against time for his team. With a mere three hours left before the crucial qualifying session, the pressure is on to make swift repairs to his damaged car.
Lawson, who had already faced misfortune during Friday’s FP2 session, found himself in a precarious position early Saturday. While navigating the tricky kerb, he lost control and slammed into the barriers, causing extensive damage to both the front wing and suspension of his vehicle. Fortunately, the 23-year-old was unharmed and exited the car without assistance, reassuring fans and team members alike of his safety.
In a candid moment over team radio, Lawson expressed his bewilderment: “I’m so sorry. I don’t even know what happened. I just got the kerb.” His crash marked a frustrating continuation of missteps, as he had already suffered a similar fate during the previous practice session, where he lost a front-right tyre after misjudging the kerbs at Turn 16 and 17. Reflecting on that incident, Lawson stated, “I got a little bit too much kerb in [Turn] 16 and bounced me across to the left… I took too much kerb in 17, and then just tried to carry the speed, and right at the last minute, lost it and hit the wall.”
The stakes are high for Lawson and the Racing Bulls team. Sky Sports F1 analyst Anthony Davidson weighed in during the broadcast, highlighting the technical challenges of the circuit: “You have to lift out of it. As painful as it is, as soon as you get on the kerb, you just don’t know which tyre will pick up the grip.” Davidson expressed hope for Lawson’s recovery, noting, “Hopefully he’ll have a car to jump into for qualifying. It’s the second time they’re going to have to repair the right-hand side of that Racing Bulls.”
Despite these setbacks, Lawson remains optimistic about the performance of his car. He mentioned, “It’s frustrating to obviously end the session in the wall, but up to that point, it was strong, and at least short-run pace at the moment looks quite good.” With the clock ticking, Lawson and the Racing Bulls face an uphill battle to salvage their Singapore Grand Prix ambitions. Will they rise to the occasion, or will misfortune strike again? Fans and followers of the sport will be watching closely as the clock counts down to qualifying.
