Lawson shares 'weird' experience heading into Red Bull F1 debut

Liam Lawson has revealed his F1 off-season has felt "weird" because of the security of his current situation with Red Bull.

For the first time in his F1 career he has held a confirmed seat heading into the winter stoppage, something that "didn't feel real for a while" according to the New Zealander.

His future with the Milton Keynes-based team was finalised in early December, once Sergio Perez was relieved of his duties.

Former RB team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was also in contention for the seat alongside Max Verstappen but Lawson held out, as anticipated.

Despite stepping into race for stints during both the 2023 and 2024 F1 seasons, the campaign ahead represents the first time the 23-year-old will compete from the start of the year.

"I think today it's starting to feel a lot more real," Lawson said. "It was the first time I had a confirmed seat going into a season break, so I had a lot more time to sit on it.

"And honestly that felt weird, because normally I don't really have time to think about it, so it almost didn't feel real for a while.

"We're in the simulator a lot more in the next few weeks, so now it's very real.

Lawson makes 'big opportunity' pledge

Sitting alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull is widely considered the most difficult task a driver in F1 can have, but Lawson is not being deterred by the daunting challenge in front of him.

That outlook and mindset was part of what attracted Red Bull to Lawson over the more experienced Tsunoda.

"I'm excited," he added. "Obviously, a big opportunity, and obviously I'll do my absolute best behind the scenes, working as hard as possible to do everybody proud... I'm just excited to get into it.