Red Bull Formula 1 reserve driver Liam Lawson claimed the lead in the Super Formula championship after taking his second victory of the season at Autopolis on Sunday.
Lawson lost a position off the line after starting from the front row but used the undercut to move into the lead when his rivals made their mandatory stop.
Lawson, who won on his debut at Fuji last month, went on to preserve his lead on used tyres to beat Ritomo Miyata by just over a second.
The win elevates Lawson to the head of the standings, four points ahead of Miyata, with Sho Tsuboi 11 points further back.
“The start wasn’t perfect, the left of the track is a bit dirty but also the bite point wasn’t quite right and it wasn’t a perfect launch,” said Lawson.
“So from P3, the team went for the opposite strategy to everyone else, the early stop. It put me out in traffic that I had to get past as quickly as possible so that I could make up time on the leaders.
“The undercut worked but I had taken everything out of the tyres getting past people and there was not much left.
“It’s great for the championship obviously. The team did a fantastic job all weekend, the car was great.”
Lawson’s title prospects were also assisted by the absence of Mugen team-mate and reigning two-time champion Tomoki Nojiri.
Nojiri was ruled out of the event through ill health but the 33-year-old was still present at Autopolis.
“I have to give a big thanks to Nojiri-san for sticking with us through the weekend and supporting us when he had his own situation to deal with and many drivers would not have been there,” said Lawson.
Lawson, who tested for Red Bull and AlphaTauri in 2022, has been linked with an AlphaTauri seat amid Nyck de Vries’ uncertain future.
