Guenther Steiner says Liam Lawson is always at the scene of the crime after Pierre Gasly incident

Follow us on Google Discover

Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson gets involved in too many incidents, former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner has said.

Lawson’s Miami Grand Prix came to an early end last weekend due to a gearbox problem. The untimely failure contributed to a dramatic incident with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.

The New Zealander lost drive as Gasly attacked him around the outside at the final corner, resulting in a collision that flipped the Alpine onto the barriers. Neither driver was hurt, and the stewards decided not to give Lawson a penalty when they investigated after the race, recognising the mitigating circumstances.

Guenther Steiner suggests Liam Lawson doesn’t have enough clean races

Speaking on the Red Flags podcast, Steiner acknowledged that Lawson’s transmission issue rendered him somewhat powerless.

But when one of the hosts asked, ‘Why is it always him?’, the former Haas chief replied: “I was thinking the same. At some stage, when something happens, you shouldn’t be involved in it!”

Lawson had clashed with Red Bull driver Max Verstappen on the opening lap as they fought for position at turn 11, with his team ordering him to give up the position even though both drivers went off track.

Is Guenther Steiner’s criticism of Liam Lawson fair?

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

The 24-year-old had finished every race in 2026 prior to Miami, though he did suffer five retirements last season, four of them due to damage.

This led to criticism from pundits, with Christijan Albers saying ‘there is always something going on with Lawson‘.

Lawson accepted that he needed to learn from last year’s incidents but will justifiably feel that what happened in Miami wasn’t his fault.

How many penalty points does Liam Lawson have?

Lawson currently has three penalty points, which ranks him joint-sixth among the 22 drivers. He is only 25% of the way to a race ban, so doesn’t need to be concerned at this stage.

Haas driver Oliver Bearman tops the list on a precarious 10, with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll second on six ahead of championship leader Kimi Antonelli (five). McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz come next on four apiece.

Martin Brundle defended Lawson after the Gasly crash, suggesting that the sight of the Alpine flipping over made the manoeuvre look far worse than it actually was.

Lawson was also praised by David Coulthard for his elbows-out approach to racing Verstappen despite the close links between the two teams. The F1TV commentator saw him ‘fighting for his career’, with his long-term future not secure.