Liam Lawson has made an impressive debut behind the wheel of a WRC car, showcasing his skills on the Goodwood Rally Stage.
A New Challenge
[IMAGE0CONTEXT:bmw_unknown] In July, the Racing Bulls driver participated in the Goodwood Rally Stage as part of a Red Bull–Ford showcase. This event marked a significant collaboration between the long-time WRC partners and Red Bull, who are also working together on the 2026 F1 power unit. Lawson’s objective was clear yet challenging: he needed to complete the course within 15 seconds of a professional rally driver’s lap time. However, given that he had only four laps to familiarize himself with both the course and the car, the task proved to be substantially more difficult than it appeared. Lawson admitted he had never driven a rally car before.
The Experience
“The challenge is for me to get within 15 seconds of a lap time set by a pro rally driver, around the Goodwood Rally Stage,” Lawson explained in a Red Bull Motorsports video. He described the course as a very narrow circuit, mostly surrounded by trees, emphasizing the limited time he had to adapt to the vehicle. The car he drove was a Rally1-spec Ford Puma, recognized as one of the fastest in the sport. M-Sport Ford’s Josh McErlean set the benchmark time at 2:26.75, with Lawson experiencing an eye-opening demonstration lap as a passenger.
“Oh beautiful! It’s so slippy,” he remarked, further expressing his surprise at the grip of the car. “When you said it’s low grip, I was expecting it to be so much slower. Mate, that is f***ed. You just don’t expect it to have that grip. And there were a couple of corners that were really, really loose. So much pitch control, like you’re constantly pitching the car on the way into the corners.”
Getting Into the Groove
When it was finally Lawson’s turn to drive, he experienced a minor setback by stalling immediately. However, he quickly regained his composure and found his rhythm. His first timed effort clocked in at 2:36.25, already within 10 seconds of McErlean’s time. By the end of his fourth lap, he had narrowed the gap to just two seconds. “I’ve never had a feeling like that from a race car,” he said. “This is so much fun. You can’t help it, the adrenaline kick… Mate, unbelievable.”
On his official timed run, Lawson recorded a time of 2:27.25, missing McErlean’s stage-winning pace by a mere half a second. This outing marked another highlight in a year that began with disappointment for Lawson, who was dropped from Red Bull’s main team after just two rounds. Since his return to Racing Bulls, he has accumulated 20 points and is currently 10 points ahead of Yuki Tsunoda, the driver who replaced him.
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