AlphaTauri’s Liam Lawson has revealed that he can’t wait for a “full build-up” to the 2023 Italian Grand Prix.
Lawson replaced Daniel Ricciardo for the Saturday and Sunday of last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, after the Aussie suffered a broken metacarpal in his left hand during a FP2 crash at Turn 3.
Lawson however managed to recover from qualifying last in his debut Qualifying session to finish 13th in the race classification, just days after he arrived at Zandvoort less than 72 hours earlier following his Super Formula commitments in Japan.
This weekend however sees the 21 year-old get his first proper taste of a “full build-up” in terms of preparation at Monza, Italy, with Lawson set to drive in Friday Practice sessions for the first time ahead of Saturday’s FP3 and Qualifying plus the race itself on Sunday.
Lawson meanwhile praised AlphaTauri for their support across the Dutch GP once he was confirmed as Ricciardo’s replacement, as he said: “The support from the team was amazing. They did everything possible to prepare me as much as possible in the limited time we had.
“Even during the race, Pierre (Hamelin, Race Engineer) was super supportive with so much information, basically walking me through it, and that really made my life a lot easier, but obviously, there are always things you can improve on.”
Lawson’s debut race though proved difficult with a mix of “difficult” wet and dry conditions across the race but he believes that challenge was “a good and positive experience,” which has helped him prepare for Monza
AlphaTauri have spent this week further working alongside Lawson to prepare him for his first full weekend as a F1 driver, as the Kiwi explained: “Apart from that, I was in the simulator this week, and even though we didn’t need to do much playing around with the seat to make me comfortable in the car, there are a few things we have looked at for this weekend.
“Monza is a lot lower downforce, so I’ll have to get used to that. Having not driven a Formula 1 car there, it will still be quite a big challenge, but it is more of a straightforward circuit, and it’s one I’ve driven a few times already.
“Regardless, there’ll be a lot more to learn, a lot more to improve on, and a lot from Zandvoort to reflect on to use for this week.”
AlphaTauri didn’t get to race in front of their home fans at Imola in May after floods forced the race weekend to be cancelled, with Lawson believing that racing at Monza for an Italian constructor will be “special.”
Lawson also refused to set any targets as he reflected upon his unexpected F1 opportunity, as he concluded: “It’s amazing to be doing this. It’s been my dream since before I can even remember, so it’s very cool to have this opportunity, and I’m just going to try to make the most of it.”
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