Liam Lawson highlights significant jeopardy ahead of 'iconic' test

Liam Lawson has labelled the threat of adverse weather at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix "interesting", with changeable conditions forecast across the entirety of the event.

The Racing Bulls driver heads into the round at Spa-Francorchamps looking to build on recent strong form, having secured a career-best sixth-place finish in the recent Austrian Grand Prix.

Relishing the challenge of the "iconic" circuit situated in the Ardennes Forest, the New Zealander has shown steady improvement since being demoted back to Racing Bulls from Red Bull two rounds into the current campaign.

Despite Laurent Mekies moving up to the Milton Keynes squad to replace Christian Horner, with Alan Permane assuming the duties of the Frenchman, Racing Bulls will be "pushing hard" to perform well at the final two grands prix before the summer break, according to the 23-year-old.

"We’ll be pushing hard to round out the first part of the season as we head into the final two races before our summer break," Lawson said.

"Spa is an iconic track with a lot of history. I’ve enjoyed racing here in other categories, so I am excited to tackle it in a Formula 1 car too."

Further compounding the jeopardy facing the paddock in Belgium is that, as a sprint weekend, there will be only one hour of practice to get up to speed, with both wet and dry spells expected on Friday.

Coupled with Pirelli introducing a step between two of its tyre compounds, there is significant uncertainty in store.

"The weather looks interesting this weekend, as it always is at this track," Lawson added, before touching upon the "reset" the break since the British Grand Prix has afforded him.

"I’m excited to be back in the car after the short break we’ve had to reset, so feel ready for a strong end to the first part of the season."