David Coulthard saw Liam Lawson ‘fighting for his career’ in Max Verstappen incident at Miami GP

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Liam Lawson made contact with former teammate Max Verstappen at the start of Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix. It was an eye-catching moment of aggression given the relationship between the two teams.

At times, Racing Bulls have been accused of doing Red Bull, their owners, too many favours on the race track, but Lawson defended extremely hard on the opening lap.

Verstappen tried to pass Lawson down the inside at turn 11 despite being fully behind at the start of the braking zone. The two cars met at the apex and both left the track, with the New Zealander emerging ahead.

David Coulthard defends Liam Lawson in Max Verstappen incident

On the second lap, Lawson pulled over on the same straight to allow Verstappen past. It’s possible that Racing Bulls were wary of a penalty, though the stewards tend to be lenient with such incidents on the opening lap, particularly when both drivers go off.

F1TV commentator David Coulthard can understand why Lawson didn’t give ‘any quarter’ to Verstappen, with his long-term future in F1 still not guaranteed.

Williams driver Carlos Sainz was critical of Verstappen for his aggressive racing, suggesting that he attempted to bully midfield drivers out of the way in the knowledge that they would likely concede.

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The four-time world champion, who lined up on the front row, was out of position after spinning at the start of the race.

Coulthard said: “Liam Lawson, he’s fighting for track position, fighting for his career. He doesn’t give any quarter to the sister team.”

The latest Red Bull youngster putting Liam Lawson under pressure

Lawson is racing alongside Arvid Lindblad, an 18-year-old Formula 3 graduate, and there could soon be another teenager emerging from the production line.

Nikola Tsolov, 19, bagged his second Formula 2 win of the year in the Miami Sprint. While he crashed in the wet Feature race, he still leads the championship after two rounds.

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As noted by the Herald, Tsolov is putting himself in a position to become the Red Bull/Racing Bulls reserve driver next year, at the very least.

But if Lawson’s form dips, there’s a chance that his seat will come under pressure from the Bulgarian.

Lawson suffered his first DNF of the year in Miami after a gearbox failure in the opening laps. Racing Bulls appeared to take a step backwards in Florida following their strong start to the year.