- Speculation Lawson is locked in battle for Red Bull seat
- Had two clashes with Perez at his home grand prix
Formula One fans have reacted in delight and dismay after Liam Lawson appeared to give his rival Serio Perez the middle finger when he passed him during an incident-packed Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.
The shocking moment came amid speculation Lawson could be in line to take Perez’s seat at Red Bull next year after the Mexican turned in yet another highly disappointing race to finish 17th, one spot behind the New Zealander.
Lawson appeared to make the rude gesture as he overtook him down the main straight at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track late in the race.
He had beaten the Mexican at his home track all weekend, running faster than him in practice on Saturday and outpacing him in qualifying to start 12th on the grid compared to Perez’s 18th.
Lawson also left Perez’s car damaged when the two clashed while battling for 10th place during the race, with the Red Bull star later saying his rival ‘took the whole side of the car off’.
A clip of Lawson’s fiery act took off on social media as it left fans divided, with some relishing the conflict while others branded the Kiwi unprofessional and childish.
‘Liam was at fault for the incident he wants the RB [Red Bull] seat so bad he gave Checo [Perez] no room. This ain’t the way to get that seat, he should show Checo more respect he’s a child,’ one fan wrote.
‘Now that’s absolutely pathetic,’ another added.
‘I think Liam is going to need some bodyguards to exit the circuit,’ joked a third.
Other commenters thought the clash is something F1 needs more of.
‘Just letting Checo know that’s his seat next year,’ one said.
Others wrote ‘Love it!’, ‘We’ve got our sport back’, ‘Lawson is easily one of my new favourites’ and ‘This rocks actually’.
After the race, Perez vented his anger over the incident that left his car damaged.
‘I was ahead into turn five, he was off the track getting back, I wasn’t expecting him just to carry on straight,’ the Red Bull star said.
‘He took the whole side of the car off but I don’t think it’s his fault because he doesn’t get any penalty.
‘He did the same to Fernando [Alonso] last weekend, he did the same to Franco [Colapinto] at the end of the race and no penalty.
‘I just told him I think we ruined both our races.’
Lawson climbed to fourth place at one point in the grand prix, but his clash with Colapinto meant he was forced to take an unscheduled pit stop and finished 16th.
The 22-year-old took Aussie Daniel Ricciardo’s seat at the RB Honda team in a headline-grabbing move in late September.
The 35-year-old Australian had been racing in F1 since 2011 and topped the podium at eight Grand Prix during a fine career. However, he has only finished in the top 10 in three of his 18 races this year.
The Kiwi driver came in for Ricciardo for five races during the 2023 campaign after the Aussie broke his wrist in a crash at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz took the chequered flag in Mexico City after an incident-packed race that gave the standings in both the drivers and constructors world championships a shake-up.
McLaren’s Lando Norris closed the gap to Max Verstappen by finishing second, with the Dutchman sixth after he was hit with two 10-second penalties for his driving at Turns Four and Eight.
That trims the defending champion’s lead to 47 points with 120 still on offer heading to Sao Paulo, Brazil on Sunday, after which three rounds will remain.
Charles Leclerc took the remaining podium spot for the Prancing Horse team, who now sit on 537 points in the constructors standings, having leapfrogged Red Bull on 512 and closing in on leaders McLaren on 566.
