Liam Lawson, the talented New Zealander racing driver, faced an unprecedented setback at the Montreal Grand Prix after a critical failure with Racing Bulls’ tire strategy involving Pirelli’s latest C6 compound. Although Lawson qualified 19th, a penalty for Yuki Tsunoda promoted him to start in 18th position, setting the stage for a difficult race ahead.
Racing Bulls’ Risky Tire Approach Fails to Deliver
Lawson’s unexpected struggles sprang from Racing Bulls’ decision to experiment with a new tire plan, which had never before presented issues for the driver. The team attempted a build lap early in the first qualifying session to quickly raise the tire temperature, hoping to generate optimal grip, but their efforts fell short.
We’ve been struggling to optimize the tire performance from the get-go. In an attempt to rectify this, we opted for a build lap at the start of Q1 to try and bring the tires up to temperature. Unfortunately, despite our efforts, we simply couldn’t find the grip we needed,
Lawson revealed to the press.
This strategic gamble contrasted sharply with Lawson’s past experience, where he had previously felt comfortable and confident using the C6 tires. Instead of gaining an advantage, the Racing Bulls’ tire experiment hindered his qualifying and compromised his race prospects.
Lawson Prepares for a Challenging Race Start
As the Canadian Grand Prix approaches, Lawson acknowledges the tough road ahead due to his unfavorable starting position and tire complications. Determined to overcome these challenges, he stressed that a strong performance will require exceptional effort from both himself and his team.
It is going to be hard from where we are starting, so we’ll have to do something quite special.
The motorsport community now watches closely to see how Lawson and Racing Bulls will recover from this adversity at Montreal, with anticipation mounting for a potential comeback driven by resilience and talent.
