Lawson: If anybody deserves F1 seat, it’s Drugovich

While Lawson can now be a bit relieved as he landed one of the most coveted seats in F1 - he still has to keep it - he touched on the fact that the driver he raced against in Formula 2 in 2022, Drugovich, is yet to secure a full time F1 seat and remains in reserve role with Aston Martin.

Drugovich won the 2022 F2 title while Lawson was third that season but the former's F1 involvement has been limited to free practice appearances with Aston Martin.

Lawson, however, insisted his former F2 rival deserves an F1 seat based on the performances he delivered in those practice sessions.

When speaking on the Pitstop podcast, the Kiwi said: "If anybody is deserving a seat right now, it’s Drugovich,

"He’s jumped in and done… his FP [in 2023] in Abu Dhabi was quicker than [Lance] Stroll. He was [second] quickest in FP1, and then this year [in 2024] I think he was quicker than Fernando [Alonso].

"I don’t know what the run plans were, maybe there was some other stuff, but I think he was quicker than Fernando this year in FP1. He deserves a seat," he insisted.

While F2 is considered as the feeder series of F1, a driver that won the junior title is not always guaranteed a seat in the top flight.

But the 2025 season will see several rookies making the move from F2 into F1. Lawson commented: "This year especially [it’s happening].

"The problem is it’s just a lottery when you go into it, honestly. It’s so changeable in terms of one year one team’s good, but the next year they’re not good anymore. The car’s the same, the tyres are the same, everything’s the same and somehow they’re just slow the next year.

"MP with Drugovich [in F2], that was the year that he just dominated it in a car that wasn’t meant to be a race-winning car. [He] crushed it."

When asked whether the 24-year-old Brazilian driver still has time to make it into F1, Lawson responded: "Yeah, for sure."