F1: Who is Daniel Ricciardo’s AlphaTauri replacement Liam Lawson - career history and girlfriend

Liam Lawson will make his F1 debut this weekend at the Dutch Grand Prix. Lawson will replace Daniel Ricciardo at Alpha Tauri after the driver broke his hand during FP2 on Friday afternoon (August 25).

Ricciardo, 34, was taken to a local hospital following the crash after he was seen holding his arm after climbing out of his car. It was then confirmed that the Australian driver would not be able to continue participating in this weekend’s race at Zandvoort, with no update on when he will return to the sport.

The driver followed McLaren’s Oscar Piastri into the barrier at Turn 3 during the second practice drive, which saw the session red flagged while the cars were cleared. It comes on just the third race for Ricciardo after he made his return to Formula 1 in 2023.

Ricciardo, who started the year as a Red Bull reserve driver, was brought into AlphaTauri just days before the Hungarian Grand Prix after the team decided to axe driver Nyck de Vries. The Dutch driver lasted just 10 races with the team before poor performances saw him lose his seat.

Liam Lawson will now sit behind the wheel for the remainder of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend. Saturday’s Free Practice 3 session will not be Lawson’s first time behind the wheel of an F1 car, but this will be the driver’s debut at a Formula 1 race.

Who is Liam Lawson?

Liam Lawson was born in Hastings, New Zealand on February 11, 2002. The 21-year-old Kiwi is a Red Bull Junior driver and is coached by three-time Grand Prix winner Ken Smith.

Lawson currently serves as a reserve driver for both Red Bull and Alpha Tauri and is frequently seen around the team’s garages on race weekend. The young driver has already made a name for himself with his success in Motorsport which has seen him working his way up to his current role.

Before turning 17, the Kiwi had already raced in Formula First, Formula Ford, Formula Four, Formula Three Asia and the Toyota Racing Series. Lawson then won the Toyota title in 2019 where he then signed as a Red Bull Junior before then making a move into F2 in 2021.

The driver has been described by Red Bull as “one of the most prodigious talents” in their academy team after he became one of their longest serving members. Lawson is rumoured to have a guaranteed F1 seat in the future because of his driving abilities.

Lawson has previously had a taste of driving a Red Bull F1 car at the 2021 Goodwood Festival of Speed. The Kiwi got behind the wheel of the 2011 Red Bull RB7 during the event.

In 2021, Lawson then took part in the Abu Dhabi Young Driver Test with AlphaTauri where he was given the opportunity to drive the AT02. The following year he made his free practice debut at the Belgian Grand Prix before the opportunity for another practice run at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Where does Liam Lawson currently compete?

Liam Lawson moved to Japan to compete in the Super Formula Championship with Team Mugen for 2023. The driver won his first race and became the first driver to take a win during the first race of their debut season.

Lawson has remained in good form, picking up three wins out of the first seven races. With just two races left in the 2023 Season, Lawson is sitting in second place and is just eight points behind championship leader Ritomo Miyata.

Liam Lawson’s Net Worth

Liam Lawson’s net worth is $1.5 million. Although his salary is not known, it is reported that the driver makes around $300,000 per season.

Who is Liam Lawson dating?

Liam Lawson is dating American student Hannah St John. His girlfriend is currently studying her bachelor’s degree in Biological and Biomedical Sciences at Arizona State University.

The 20-year-old has also become a social media influencer with 12.1k followers on Instagram and 52.7k on TikTok. Lawson announced their relationship on social media in August with a post which was captioned: “Screen time down 99%.”

Hannah has been sharing photos and videos of her driver boyfriend on social media since January 2023.