Christijan Albers thinks team could make mid-season change in 2024 and hire 21-year-old

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Former Formula 1 driver Christijan Albers believes we could see young star Liam Lawson on the grid before the end of the 2024 season.

Liam Lawson replaced Daniel Ricciardo at AlphaTauri after he broke his hand at Zandvoort and defied expectations in his five Grand Prix.

Writing in his column for De Telegraaf, Christijan Albers believes it won’t be long until we see the young Kiwi once again.

At the start of 2023, there was plenty of expectation on Yuki Tsunoda as he headed into his third Formula 1 season and rookie Nyck de Vries.

The Dutchman was a rookie but at 28 had plenty of experience in other series and during his cameo with Williams in 2022 scored two unlikely points.

However, ten races later he was out of the door with Ricciardo brought in to try and improve the team’s fortunes.

Unfortunately, Ricciardo was back out of the car in the Netherlands after breaking his hand avoiding Oscar Piastri during practice.

Up stepped Liam Lawson and Albers believes he’ll be back on the grid in 2024 after his impressive performances for AlphaTauri.

His future might rely on Sergio Perez, who only has a year left on his contract but will be under pressure throughout the year knowing there are several drivers in the Red Bull group wanting his seat.

Albers backs Lawson to be back on F1 grid in 2024

Speaking about the 21-year-old, Albers said: “Personally, I think it’s a shame that Liam Lawson doesn’t have a seat.

“As a replacement for the injured Daniel Ricciardo, he did very well during five race weekends.

“I think Lawson has earned a chance, especially in a training team like AlphaTauri. Shame!

“Although it wouldn’t surprise me if that changes during the 2024 season. If Sergio Pérez continues like this at Red Bull, I think there is a high chance that he will be replaced by Ricciardo, provided he performs well.

“And then the way is still clear for Lawson. Pérez can be especially happy that he signed a two-year contract extension in 2022. Otherwise, he would not have been at Red Bull next season.”

Many F1 fans will agree with Albers that Lawson has earned the right to a full-time seat in 2024.

Bernie Collins suggested that he should be on the grid instead of Yuki Tsunoda, while Karun Chandhok reckons he’ll fancy his chances of earning a seat.

Anthony Davidson even said that everyone in the paddock thought Lawson would be perfect to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams.

After finishing second in Super Formula in 2023, Lawson has turned down racing in another series this year to concentrate on his reserve driver role.

That suggests he wants to be as ready as he possibly can be if he does get the call up to return to the grid.