Lawson details vital ‘access’ during F1 rookie concerns

Liam Lawson has revealed the advanced level of F1's simulators has allowed young drivers to get up to speed quickly in real cars amid a slash in testing opportunities.

Hours allocated to pre-season testing, as well as in-season testing, have been dramatically cut in recent years due to cost-saving measures.

In a bid to improve track time in up-to-date machinery for rookie drivers, teams will have to allocate four FP1 sessions (up from two) to inexperienced competitors from next year.

Many drivers who step up to F1 gain experience beforehand by being part of a team's junior programme and having access to their facilities - which Lawson highlighted as being crucial in the current F1 environment.

“I think we can't really test much,” Lawson told media including RacingNews365. “I know many years ago that you could test pretty much whenever you liked, you know, had test cars and things like that. 

“Although that would be very, very cool. Obviously that's not the way the sport is right now. 

“And that's why simulator driving and the work we do behind the scenes with data and just preparing for an event, it's mostly simulator work, I would say.”

Lawson has been called up for the remainder of the season at RB in place of Daniel Ricciardo and asserted his behind the scenes work has kept him prepared.

“Every team has their own simulator that they develop and that they try and work with,” he said. 

“And it's about basically trying to make it as obviously realistic as possible. So we spend a long time as a reserve driver, even going through Formula 3 and Formula 2, we get introduced to the Formula 1 work and preparing for a Formula 1 race. 

“That's why the access we have now, it's getting a lot closer every year. That's why it's becoming, let's say, easier or closer for us to be able to step in. It's still a challenge for sure. 

“It's still very different. It's just the work that we do behind the scenes. There's a lot of it probably that maybe people don't see.”