Formula 1: Report card – assessing Liam Lawson’s 2025 season, race by race

This Herald Premium Sport story was first published in December.

With his first full season of Formula One now completed, Liam Lawson can look back with pride after a challenging 12 months.

The Kiwi driver was demoted just two races into 2025, but bounced back in style to keep his place for next year. Alex Powell breaks down the results that kept Lawson in the Red Bull stable.

Australia

Qualified: 18th

Finished: Did not finish (DNF)

A tough weekend. In his first taste of Red Bull’s RB21, Lawson struggled in Friday practice and went even worse on Saturday, when a pneumatic issue with his engine wiped out his last chance to learn the circuit before qualifying.

Starting 18th, Lawson struggled and was put out of his misery when he crashed out late in the race, after Red Bull left him out with a set of slick tyres on a wet track.

Grade: D

China

Qualified: 20th

Finished: 12th

If Lawson only getting two practice sessions in Melbourne was bad, the sprint format in China made things even worse. While the Kiwi made the equal-most overtakes in the sprint, qualifying last for the Grand Prix saw him nearly two seconds behind his teammate. Still, Lawson was able to finish the race, and was even upgraded to 12th when the Ferrari cars were both disqualified.

Less than a week later, the Kiwi was demoted by Red Bull and replaced by Japan’s Yuki Tsunoda.

Grade: D+

Japan

Qualified: 14th

Finished: 17th

Lawson’s first race after his demotion saw him return to Racing Bulls – and immediately saw an improvement. For the first time in 2025, the Kiwi advanced from the first stage of qualifying, and even started one place ahead of Tsunoda.

However, Lawson lost a place off the line, before a pit-strategy gamble – hoping for rain that never arrived, combined with Suzuka’s narrow nature making it close to impossible to overtake – saw him go backwards.

Grade: C-

Bahrain

Qualified: 17th

Finished: 16th

After three disrupted races, Lawson returned to a track where he had Formula Two success, but still couldn’t turn his season around. A fault with his Drag Reduction System (DRS) meant another exit in the first stage of qualifying.

Then, in the grand prix, incidents with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll and Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg saw Lawson slapped with two separate penalties, worth 15 seconds, and saw him finish 17th after crossing the line 13th.

Grade: C-

Saudi Arabia

Qualified: 12th

Finished: 12th

For the first time in 2025, Lawson outqualified his teammate and was just 0.089s shy of reaching the final stage of qualifying. However, a poor pit strategy and a harsh penalty for an overtake on Alpine’s Jack Doohan saw Lawson stay where he was over 50 laps – as teammate Isack Hadjar went from 14th to 10th.

Grade: C

Miami

Qualified: 15th

Finished: DNF

Despite a DNF in the race, following a first-lap incident with Doohan, Lawson’s weekend wasn’t as bad as it seemed. The Kiwi should have taken seventh place in the sprint race, only to again be hit with a harsh penalty for tangling with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.

Even though Lawson overtook Alonso at turn 12, the veteran being ahead at turn 11 saw the stewards rule the corner belonged to the Spaniard, before the Kiwi sent him into the barriers. Regardless of the result, Miami showed Lawson’s racing instincts were undamaged by his Red Bull demotion.

Grade: C-

Imola

Qualified: 16th

Finished: 14th

Another tough weekend on a difficult circuit. Qualifying crashes by Tsunoda and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto triggered red flags that left Lawson unable to have a second attempt to set a competitive lap time.

And like in Suzuka, the narrow nature of Imola saw Lawson unable to make his way up the field. Imola has since been stripped of its status as a Formula One track from 2026.

Grade: C-

Monaco

Qualified: 9th

Finished: 8th

After seeing glimpses of Lawson’s best in 2025, Monaco was where it all clicked. With the race effectively decided in qualifying every year, Lawson advanced into Q3 for the first time, with the ninth-best time.

Then, as governing body the FIA implemented two mandatory pit stops, Lawson played the ultimate team game and deliberately drove slow – knowing he couldn’t be passed – to create a gap big enough for teammate Hadjar to change his tyres twice.

And while it looked like that could cost Lawson, Williams copied the same strategy to give the Kiwi enough space to do the same and come home eighth for a career-best result.

It wouldn’t be the last time.

Grade: A-

Spain

Qualified: 13th

Finished: 11th

Wrong place, wrong time. After qualifying 13th, despite being in the top 10 in all three practice sessions, Lawson was on the fringes of advancing to a points finish in Barcelona. However, a late safety car saw Aston Martin pit Alonso for fresher tyres.

That speed advantage told, as Alonso won out to deny Lawson the final point, before moving up to ninth when Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was penalised.

Grade: B-

Canada

Qualified: 19th

Finished: DNF

Another struggle. Again, Lawson was quick in practice – and finished in the top 10 in two out of three sessions. Come qualifying, though, Racing Bulls couldn’t find the right window for Lawson’s tyres and he set the 19th-best time.

Starting 18th after Tsunoda was hit by a grid penalty, Lawson’s power unit then gave way, as Racing Bulls made the call to retire the car to avoid further damage – even after changing the Kiwi’s entire engine and seeing him start from pit lane.

Grade: D

Austria

Qualified: 6th

Finished: 6th

For the second time in 2025, Lawson bettered his best.

While there might be an asterisk over Lawson’s finish in Monaco, Austria was the Kiwi at his best. Starting sixth as the best-placed of Red Bull’s four cars, a first-lap incident saw Lawson fall to ninth, while Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli retired.

From there, though, Lawson was flawless. The Kiwi completed a one-stop strategy, and kept Alonso – one of the best to ever grace the sport – in his mirrors for 66 laps, on old tyres, and got home in sixth.

Grade: A+

Great Britain

Qualified: 15th

Finished: DNF

After the high of Austria, Lawson came crashing back down to earth at Silverstone. Despite again shining in practice, a slip on cold tyres in qualifying saw the Kiwi miss out on a place in the second qualifying session (Q2) by 0.304s.

And as the lights went out a day later, Tsunoda forced Haas’ Esteban Ocon wide at turn five, into Lawson, who suffered terminal damage to his floor. He failed to finish a grand prix for the fourth time this year.

Grade: D

Belgium

Qualified: 9th

Finished: 8th

After missing the points in the sprint race – even with a top-10 finish – Lawson made up for it in the grand prix. Starting ninth in torrential rain, Lawson crucially overtook teammate Hadjar on lap 12, right before the drivers switched from wet to dry tyres.

From there, Lawson’s hold of eighth was effectively unchallenged, as Hadjar complained of a power-unit issue and finished last.

Grade: A-

Hungary

Qualified: 9th

Finished: 8th

In the last race before the mid-season summer break, Lawson made sure he finished on a high. For the first time in his career, the Kiwi nabbed back-to-back points finishes, in what were his most impressive drives.

Starting ninth, pit strategy saw Lawson in eighth by the time all the drivers had made their stops. That left him in front of Verstappen, the four-time world champion. But, as was the case with Alonso in Austria, Lawson gave Verstappen no chance to overtake, and banked four more points to head into the summer.

Grade: A

Netherlands

Qualified: 8th

Finished: 12th

Hunting three points finishes in a row, everything was going according to plan when the season returned at Zandvoort. Lawson had qualified inside the top 10 once more, and moved as high as seventh after a safety car.

But as the race resumed on lap 27, Lawson came wheel to wheel with Williams’ Carlos Sainz, lost his left rear tyre and was forced into a pit stop that ended any chance for points. Sainz was hit with a 10-second penalty for his role, while Lawson was able to make his way back up the field.

Grade: B

Italy

Qualified: 20th

Finished: 14th

With his qualifying effort deleted for infringing track limits, Lawson started at the back of the pack, albeit aided by Hadjar needing to begin from pit lane.

Another strategy gamble by Racing Bulls had Lawson as the only driver starting on soft tyres on a hot track, leaving having to pit before every other driver.

Even while he was able to get through 43 laps on a set of hard tyres, having to pit so early left the Kiwi at a serious disadvantage by the time drivers around him changed theirs.

Grade: C

Azerbaijan

Qualified: 3rd

Finished: 5th

As close to a perfect weekend as possible. In a chaotic qualifying session that saw six drivers crash to trigger red flags, Lawson managed the mayhem to set the third-best time and achieve his best start in Formula One.

While the pace disadvantage of Lawson’s Racing Bulls car told over 51 laps, as he was overtaken by both Mercedes cars, the Kiwi stood tall. Making use of a one-stop strategy, Lawson was able to defend from Tsunoda, two Ferraris and the McLaren of Lando Norris.

Even with no DRS, and on an old set of tyres, Lawson couldn’t be caught, and came home for his best result ... so far.

Grade: A+

Singapore

Qualified: 12th

Finished: 15th

Returning to the scene of his maiden Formula One points back in 2023, Lawson couldn’t repeat the dose two years later. Instead, the Kiwi ruined his own weekend with practice crashes on both Friday and Saturday.

That left him seriously underdone, in terms of time on track come qualifying, where he could only manage 15th. And starting that far back on a street circuit, Lawson did everything in his power – running long on his first set of tyres – as hopes of a late safety car did not bear fruit.

Grade: D

USA

Qualified: 12th

Finished: 11th

For the second time, Lawson was able to finish in the top 10 of a sprint race, without scoring points. That would only be a sign of what was to come.

After qualifying 12th in the grand prix, Lawson fell to 13th on the first lap, but made up two places when Antonelli and Sainz collided on lap seven. But with the track temperature reaching 44C, drivers were cautious in not pushing their tyres too hard, and forcing an extra stop.

For Lawson, that meant missing the points by one place, twice, in two days.

Grade: C+

Mexico

Qualified: 15th

Finished: DNF

For the fifth time in 2025, Lawson was taken out, with Sainz the culprit again. After Lawson qualified 15th, courtesy of not being able to set a time in Q2, a start in the middle of the pack brought Lawson and Sainz together again.

Terminal damage to his front wing was not Lawson’s fault, but a fifth DNF – the equal-most for the season – did no favours to the Kiwi’s campaign.

Grade: C-

Brazil

Qualified: 7th

Finished: 7th

A poor sprint result was no indicator of how Lawson would fare in the grand prix at Interlagos. Starting seventh on the grid, he was one of just two drivers to pull off a one-stop strategy, and again showed his wares in defence.

The Kiwi made a set of medium tyres last 52 out of 71 laps, and was forced to keep teammate Hadjar behind him – even as a late attempt at an overtake saw contact between the two Racing Bulls cars. Lawson’s result – holding seventh – was made all the better by the fact Hadjar started ninth, but could only finish eighth.

Grade: A

Las Vegas

Qualified: 6th

Finished: 14th

A contrasting weekend. As rain poured down over the Las Vegas Strip on Friday night (local time), Lawson showed his incredible ability in the wet. The Kiwi put his car on to the third row with a phenomenal lap, which could have been even better if an error didn’t see his qualifying attempt cut short by one lap. That was as good as it got, though.

A turn-one incident saw Lawson sandwiched between Mercedes’ George Russell, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and his own teammate. And with those options on the table, all Lawson could do was barrel into Piastri to his right, destroy his front wing and try to fight from the back of the pack after an early pit stop.

While he crossed the line 16th, both McLaren cars being disqualified moved the Kiwi up to 14th.

Grade: C+

Qatar

Qualified: 12th

Finished: 9th

At the final race before Red Bull finalised its 2026 driver pairings, Lawson performed at the right time. With a 14th-place finish in the sprint race, he narrowly missed the top 10 in qualifying on a track where overtaking is nigh on impossible.

In the grand prix, though, Lawson did exactly what he needed to do. The Kiwi put in a composed display and waited for drivers to make mistakes in front of him. When Pierre Gasly and Nico Hulkenberg took each other out, Lawson moved up to 11th, and then 10th when Ollie Bearman had a slow pit stop.

And when Hadjar suffered a puncture on the final laps, Lawson turned his 12th-place start into a ninth-place finish. To make things better, his main competition for a 2026 seat, Tsunoda, could only manage 10th. A few days later, the Kiwi was confirmed to stay on the grid, as Tsunoda made way.

Grade: B

Abu Dhabi

Qualified: 13th

Finished: 18th

With his future secured, Lawson could finish the 2025 season with no jeopardy on his performance. Starting 13th, Lawson made up two places by the end of the first lap, only to tangle with Haas’ Ollie Bearman.

The Racing Bulls driver was penalised for erratic driving and despite entering the pits in seventh, Lawson was 20th by the time his punishment was served. From there, he made up a couple of places to close out the season.

And even as Lawson and Hadjar both finished outside the points, Racing Bulls had enough in the bank to secure sixth in the constructors championship. Job done.

Grade: D

Alex Powell is a sports journalist for the NZ Herald. He has been a sports journalist since 2016.