Liam Lawson at the Japan Grand Prix: what you need to know

Japan F1 Grand Prix

Starts: 5pm Sunday, 6 April

Suzuka International Circuit

Live updates on RNZ Sport

Liam Lawson has quickly become New Zealand's most talked-about sportsperson, with his 2025 F1 season already packed with enough drama to make a soap opera - and we're only two races in.

The 23-year-old takes to the Suzuka track back in the Racing Bulls car, after disappointing finishes at Melbourne and Shanghai for the top Red Bull team, although there's far more to it than just that.

Why has Lawson been demoted?

Honestly, the only people that can really answer that are Red Bull bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko.

Lawson was given the RB21 car, which has a very different configuration to what he was used to, and was expected to finish in the points, as well as provide the team with important racing data.

There's very much a feeling that he was stitched up and dumped, another victim of that well-worn adage about F1 simply being a cut-throat environment.

What does he have to prove today?

While it's extremely unlikely Lawson will contend for the podium, he can prove a real point by finishing ahead of Yuki Tsunoda, the driver who has leapfrogged him into the RB21 car.

Tsunoda is the Suzuka hometown hero, with Japanese fans expecting plenty out of him, but he has already struggled in qualifying to start 15th on the grid.

Lawson has already won that first round by starting one place higher.

Will Lawson be confident at Suzuka?

Yes, although his 14th place in qualifying is disappointing, because Suzuka is the track he knows the best.

Lawson finished 11th there in 2023 - also one place ahead of Tsunoda. He's spent plenty of time racing in Japan with the Red Bull Junior Team in the Formula 2 and Super Formula classes.

What fellow drivers are saying

"It's not easy for us. Especially after two races, it's a quick decision and not one which I agree with.

"It's nice for Liam to find his feet and go again, because I think he's a great driver. Like the other rookies, he has a lot of pressure.

"To have a new beginning is nice." - Ollie Bearman (Haas)

"Two races is not long to figure things out. I have raced against Liam in the junior categories.

"These two races weren't representative of what he's capable of." - Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

What about the rest of the race

Red Bull's Max Verstappen has claimed pole position at Suzuka, followed by the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Verstappen is aiming for his fourth Japan Grand Prix win in a row, this is also his fourth pole in as many years.

The inside word is that lap times will be lower than previous years, due to part of the track being resurfaced, and that was reflected in Verstappen's surprise track record late in the qualifying window.

Carlos Sainz of Williams picked up a penalty, dropping three places to 15th after he was found to have impeded Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton in qualifying.

Suzuka circuit details

Opened: 1962

First F1 Grand Prix: 1987

Circuit length: 5.807 km

Number of laps: 53

Race distance: 307.471 km

Lap record: Max Verstappen 1m 26.983s (2025)

Suzuka has a well-earned reputation as one of the favourite tracks of F1 drivers, with high speeds and snaking 'S' curves, as well as its iconic figure-eight layout. The expected crowd today is about 230,000 fans.

Full starting grid

1 Max Verstappen (Red Bull), 2 Lando Norris (McLaren), 3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren), 4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 5 George Russell (Mercedes), 6 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), 7 Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls), 8 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari), 9 Alex Albon (Williams), 10 Oliver Bearman (Haas), 11 Pierre Gasly (Alpine), 12 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), 13 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), 14 Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull), 15 Carlos Sainz - PENALTY (Williams), 16 Nico Hulkenberg (Stake), 17 Gabriel Bortoleto (Stake), 18 Esteban Ocon (Haas), 19 Jack Doohan (Alpine), 20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

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