Lawson Eyes Historic Points Streak from Ninth in Austria

Liam Lawson secured ninth on the Austrian Grand Prix grid, continuing a strong qualifying run for Racing Bulls as both cars locked out the front of the midfield. Teammate Arvid Lindblad took 10th, leaving Lawson poised to record his fourth consecutive points finish—a milestone that would make him the first New Zealander since Denny Hulme in 1973 to achieve the feat.

Why it matters:

Lawson's consistent Q3 appearances are establishing Racing Bulls as the undisputed midfield leader, regularly outpacing rivals who brought fresh upgrades to Austria. A fourth straight points result would carry real historical significance, marking the longest such streak by a Kiwi driver since Denny Hulme over five decades ago.

The details:

• Lawson finished just 0.052 seconds behind Isack Hadjar's Red Bull, underscoring how close Racing Bulls is running to the front-runners.
• The team adopted an aggressive tire strategy in Q1, using two new soft sets to guarantee both cars progressed before switching to scrubbed and fresh tires through Q2 and Q3.
• Lawson singled out the result as a key benchmark with several rivals bringing upgrades to Spielberg, yet Racing Bulls still ended the session best of the midfield.
• Head of trackside engineering Mattia Spini noted that Sunday is expected to bring some of the highest temperatures of the season, which will test both car and driver.

What's next:

Lawson admitted Racing Bulls has found Sundays trickier than Saturdays recently, meaning race pace rather than grid position could prove decisive. With both cars inside the top 10 and extreme heat forecasted, the team faces a critical challenge to convert its qualifying speed into a strong double points finish.