F1 News: Liam Lawson Addresses Williams Contract Rumours

Liam Lawson has stressed that he's a Red Bull driver.

Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson has addressed rumors of him being loaned out to Williams for next season. The 21-year-old driver revealed he won't be moving to Williams as he is a "Red Bull driver." 

Currently, Lawson drives for sister team AlphaTauri as a temporary replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, who injured his left metacarpal and is undergoing therapy. With AlphaTauri signing the Australian driver and Yuki Tsunoda for 2024, there's no seat left for Lawson next year. 

Lawson has impressed several teams with his reserve driver duties, one of them being James Vowles from Williams who hasn't decided on their second driver alongside Alex Albon, as questions on Logan Sargeant's contract extension have been raised after taking into account his performance struggles this year.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has already clarified that it is unlikely Lawson would join Williams on loan, despite Vowles being inclined toward the idea. However, the Red Bull reserve driver cleared the air during the Japanese Grand Prix weekend, saying that he is now trained to work under pressure. He told the media:

“I’m a Red Bull driver.

"All the Red Bull seats are filled and unfortunately for me that means that, for now, I’ll be reserve driver.

"I’ve got my head down at the moment trying to make the most of these races.

"Ultimately obviously my goal is to be in F1 so I’ll try and do what I can to achieve that in the future. One of the positives about being a Red Bull driver is, for me having five years in this programme, it’s a high-pressure programme.

"We’re put under pressure from day one, and I’m now used to that. It’s been five years of that, so situations like this, I’m almost… I’m ready for them.”