Liam Lawson's brief stint with Red Bull Racing has wrapped up, with the team confirming that Isack Hadjar will be back behind the wheel at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix this weekend. Hadjar has made a successful recovery from the wrist fracture he picked up during summer training, and Red Bull was quick to praise Lawson for stepping in and delivering solid performances across three races in the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain.

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Lawson collected 14 points during his three-race run, picking up a seventh place at Zandvoort and a sixth at Madrid for an average of 4.67 points per race. That's lower than Hadjar's 6.5 average, but there's more to the story. Red Bull reckoned Lawson had genuine top-six pace at Monza before an engine penalty and front-wing damage derailed his race, suggesting he could've nabbed more points in Italy had things gone his way.

The really telling stat here is how the Kiwi compared to Max Verstappen. Lawson averaged just 0.277 seconds off the world champion's pace across the races, which is remarkably similar to Hadjar's 0.232-second deficit. Keep in mind Lawson had never even sat in the car before his emergency call-up, so that's a seriously impressive effort. Last year in the same machinery, Lawson was eight-tenths down the road from Verstappen, so this represents a massive step forward in adapter

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Qualifying numbers tell a different story. Lawson's average grid position was 10.25 against Hadjar's 6.56, but even that's a bit misleading. The Kiwi might've easily made Q3 at Monza if Oscar Piastri hadn't impeded him on a crucial lap. When you factor in that Zandvoort and Monza feature lower lap times than most circuits, Lawson's overall comparison to Hadjar looks even stronger.

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The small sample size and unusual track characteristics mean we shouldn't read too much into these numbers, but they absolutely paint a picture of a driver who adapted incredibly quickly to the Red Bull package. Verstappen reckons 2026 cars are easier to find the limit in because of battery conservation, though reigning champion Lando Norris disagrees and says these current machines are actually trickier overall. Either way, Lawson's performance gives Red Bull plenty to think about for the future.

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