History to be made at Highlands

History will show that we had a Red Bull Junior driver competing in a NZ national championship on Saturday 7 November 2020. His name is Liam Lawson from Pukekohe.

The first time Liam Lawson was at Highland Motorsport Park in 2019 he left the circuit having established three things. This Saturday he makes his third appearance in Cromwell, this time competing in the New Zealand Endurance Championship Three Hour title race, pairing with Invercargill’s Scott O’Donnell in an Audi R8 LMS GT3. It will be Lawson’s first time competing in a saloon car and could be his last time on a NZ track for some time.

The opening round of the 2019 Castrol Toyota Racing Series took place at Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell. It was Lawson’s first appearance in the series and he made it memorable. He pulled off the most stunning outside passing manoeuvre, on fellow Kiwi Marcus Armstrong, seen at the circuit to win. A move that has become part of TRS history.

27min – Lawson passes Armstrong Race 3, Rnd 1 , 2019 Toyota Racing Series, Highlands Motorsport Park

What he immediately established was that he was the best (and still is) young and upcoming Kiwi single seater driver. He left Highlands leading the series having won two of the opening three races and went on to win the title. He also caught the attention of Red Bull’s advisor Dr Helmut Marko and received an offer of a Junior Driver contract. Since then he has raced for Red Bull in European Formula Open and Formula 3 for the past two seasons.

Lawson will be in one of the quickest cars on the grid paired with O’Donnell who is no slouch. He recently put in quite an extraordinary 90 minute stint at the final round of the South Island Endurance Series at Timaru International Raceway 17 October.

***Liam Lawson will make his saloon car debut in an Audi R8 at the NZ Endurance Championship 2020***

The car is prepared by Track Tec Racing who ran the car last season in the South Island Series with Dale Chapman/Andrew Waite/Marc Doran, finishing runner up to Neil Foster/Jonny Reid in a similar Audi.

This Saturday Reid and Foster will be formidable competition. Reid would be one of the quickest around Highlands having driven the Audi for the last two seasons. There will also be the very quick Aston Martin of Alex Riberas and Darren Kelly plus a handful of other quick entries ready to pounce.

Lawson will be a thrill to watch. He will be the sharpest in form driver’s on the grid, coming off the back of two highly competitive FIA Formula 3 seasons. This kid is destined for for higher things and on a trajectory to F1.

History will be made on Saturday at Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell. We are unlikely to see Lawson back again in the Toyota Racing Series. Will this be the last time we see him competing at home? His appearance alone will be part of our history.