The return of Liam Lawson
From the next United States Grand Prix at the Austin circuit, Liam Lawson will return to Formula 1 as an official driver after a stint of five races last season. Interestingly, in 2023, the young talent replaced Daniel Ricciardo at AlphaTauri (now Racing Bulls) due to an injury suffered by the Australian during the practice sessions of the Dutch GP. This time, however, the 22-year-old will step in for the former Red Bull driver permanently, following the latter’s disappointing results.
Nine New Zealanders before Liam Lawson
With Liam Lawson’s return, he won’t be the only New Zealander back in Formula 1. Looking to the past, before Liam Lawson’s debut, only nine drivers had made the leap into the Circus. The most recent was Brendon Hartley, who also raced for the Faenza team (then Toro Rosso), but only managed to score 4 points between 2017 and 2018. He is not remembered as a standout in Formula 1, unlike some of his compatriots.
The great successes
The most emblematic case is undoubtedly Denny Hulme. The only New Zealander to have raced over 100 races and the only one to win a world championship, Denny Hulme became world champion in 1967, with a career that included eight wins and 33 podiums. Another New Zealander who succeeded in the late ’50s and early ’60s was Bruce McLaren, who finished first four times. Before his tragic death at Goodwood in 1970, he founded his own team in 1966, initially called Bruce McLaren Motor Racing. This team would go on to make history in Formula 1 and is now known as McLaren, having won 8 Constructors’ Championships and 12 Drivers’ Championships. Denny Hulme and McLaren were thus the only New Zealanders to achieve at least one victory in Formula 1, but another driver, Chris Amon, also secured a podium finish. Amon had 11 top-three finishes and 5 pole positions between the ’60s and ’70s, racing for prestigious teams like Lotus, Tyrrell, Brabham, and Ferrari.
The uphill battles
Throughout its history, Formula 1 has seen other New Zealand drivers who faced less favorable results. Excluding Brendon Hartley (with Liam Lawson scoring points in all five races he participated in in 2023), the only other driver to finish in the points before him was Howden Ganley. Between 1971 and 1973, primarily driving for BRM, he earned a total of 10 points, achieving his first notable result at Monza. Unfortunately, the F1 experiences of four other drivers—Anthony Shelly, John Nicholson, Graham McRae, and Mike Thackwell—were less fortunate; they qualified for very few GPs and never saw the checkered flag.
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