AlphaTauri stand-in Liam Lawson has insisted he "wouldn't be happy" with a return to a Red Bull reserve role next season. The New Zealander has impressed in his three races as substitute for Daniel Ricciardo after the eight-time F1 race winner broke his hand in a practice crash at the Dutch Grand Prix. Lawson has outperformed teammate Yuki Tsunoda, with a points finish at the Singapore Grand Prix - where he knocked championship leader Max Verstappen out of qualifying to secure a top 10 starting position - underlying the potential he holds. The performances have led to a likely face-off between Lawson and Tsunoda for a seat alongside Ricciardo for the Faenza-based outfit next season, given the Australian is tipped to remain on the grid to provide experience on one side of the team's garage. On whether talks had taken place with Red Bull's hierarchy over plans for 2024, Lawson told media including RacingNews365.com : "To be honest, there hasn't been a huge amount of time to discuss things like that. "But on what has happened so far, it has been pretty positive. "I guess the message for me is to keep my head down and try to keep delivering until this opportunity I have ends when Daniel comes back."
Should AlphaTauri opt for Tsunoda and Ricciardo for next term, Lawson would likely face another year in a reserve role given the lack of seats left available across the grid. "I wouldn't be happy to go back to being a reserve but obviously, I know how hard it is to get into F1," conceded the Super Formula championship contender. "I understand that can be really difficult sometimes so what will happen will happen, but these are things I haven't thought about too much, I am just trying to make the most of this."
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