Ex-Formula 1 team boss Guenther Steiner says Kiwi driver Liam Lawson has the potential to be world champion – in the right car.
The former Haas team principal made the comments while speaking to More FM shortly after the Mexico Grand Prix, when Lawson surged from the back to finish ninth on track and seventh in the final result.
His comments come amid uncertainty about Lawson's F1 future, with his team, Racing Bulls, yet to announce whether it will extend his contract into 2027.
Steiner, who led the US-based Haas for 10 years, believed Racing Bulls would retain Lawson but said the 24-year-old needed to "make his own way out of the Red Bull family".
“I think his promotion back to the Red Bull team from Racing Bulls, I don’t think that will happen," he said.
Asked if he thought Lawson had the talent to be world champion, Steiner said: "I think in the right car, he can be.
"There are a lot of them with similar talent to him at the moment in Formula 1.
“But when you get in the right team at the right place at the right time, he could achieve it. I think he has shown in this moment he can do a very good job with Racing Bulls, who are not in the top four teams.
“He has shown he can do a good job, but now he needs to be in one of the top four teams.”
The case for dropping Lawson became harder after Monday's Brazilian Grand Prix, where he qualified third on the starting grid.
When the red lights went out, he got the jump on McLaren's Lando Norris and briefly ran in second, chasing world champion Kimi Antonelli for the lead.
Lawson dropped back to eighth as faster cars passed, with his final result upgraded to seventh when Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was penalised for hitting the Kiwi's wheel during an overtake attempt.
Following the race, Lawson said it was "good fun".
"[I'm] just trying to enjoy driving at the moment, the car is in a great place," he said.
"The fact that we're fighting the Ferraris, McLarens, and Mercedes at different points in the race today is obviously cool."
Lawson will be back behind the wheel on November 20 for the first practice session at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
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