Marko: Lawson has the speed, he's someone for the future

Lawson was drafted in the last minute to replace Ricciardo at Zandvoort, after the Australian broke his hand following an accident during practice, and has done well since then to drive smart races and keep his nose clean after two races in top flight.

And it seems, if what Christian Horner said is something to go by that Lawson will have two more races to sharpen his skills in an F1 car, as it seems Ricciardo will be away for longer given the severity of his fracture.

Marko echoed Horner's sentiments when asked about a potential timeline for Ricciardo to return, he told Servus TV: "Unfortunately, it’s a fairly complicated fracture

"The assumption is six weeks, and we don’t want to take any risks with that. Luckily we have found a great replacement in Liam Lawson.

"I expect him (Ricciardo) to be able to race again in Qatar at the earliest. Singapore and Suzuka are especially two races that are the most difficult for the hand," the Austrian maintained.

Lawson finished 11th at the 2023 Italian Grand Prix at Monza, and could've scored his first points in F1 had AlphaTauri devised a better race strategy.

Speaking of the Kiwi, Marko said: "Lawson has been with us for some time, and he is a true New Zealander, just like Denny Hulme and Bruce McLaren. He takes a tough but smart stance in battles.

"He really is a man for the future. He could have won points (at Monza) if his strategy had been good at AlphaTauri. We unfortunately have to note that.

"He certainly had the speed, and he is really is someone for the future," the 80-year-old concluded.

Lawson admitted he was disappointed to miss out on a points' finish at Monza, he said: "A couple of things went wrong today [Sunday], we need to look into the start, as I could have done a better job, and that’s where we lost the chance.

"The pace wasn’t too bad then, but the race slightly got away from us. I’m still learning the procedures and definitely starting to feel more comfortable in the car, but I’m just a little bit disappointed with my race, as I think we may have had the pace for points today. I’m not sure though, so we need to look into it," he explained.

"These races are longer than I’m used to, so definitely adjusting, but I felt much more prepared than I did last weekend, so I'm happy about that," Lawson, who races in Japanese Super Formula, concluded.