Lawson Keeps Sprint Point After Stewards Clear Late Hadjar Defence

Liam Lawson retained the final point from Saturday's sprint race at Silverstone after stewards elected not to penalize his aggressive last-lap defence against Isack Hadjar. The Racing Bulls driver finished eighth despite a post-race investigation into his late move across the Red Bull into Stowe, with Hadjar himself supporting Lawson's case to the officials and confirming no contact was made.

Why it matters:

The decision preserves Lawson's consecutive points-scoring momentum and underlines how driver testimony is increasingly shaping stewarding outcomes in tight midfield battles. With Racing Bulls showing genuine race pace, keeping the result intact could prove critical in the tight championship order as teams fight for every position.

The details:

• Lawson started ninth but passed Pierre Gasly early to establish himself in the points, crossing the line 0.7s ahead of Hadjar.
• The defence into Stowe on the penultimate lap drew an investigation for an abnormal change of direction, but stewards only issued a warning, noting Hadjar was left enough room.
• Hadjar, who recovered from a poor start to charge late with different energy levels, told stewards the incident did not deserve a penalty despite being "very aggressive" from the cockpit.
• Lawson admitted the move was "quite aggressive" but explained he had not started braking when he moved across on the long entry to the corner.

What's next:

Lawson backed up his sprint result by advancing to Q3 for Sunday's grand prix, qualifying tenth behind teammate Arvid Lindblad. The New Zealander is aiming to extend his grand prix points streak to five races, though he admitted the team completely lost qualifying balance after topping Q1. With Racing Bulls showing race pace to fight for points, Lawson believes another top-ten finish is realistic at Silverstone.