Lawson set to remain for Qatar, Ricciardo targeting COTA comeback

Liam Lawson is set to retain his seat at AlphaTauri for this weekend’s Qatar Grand Prix, with Daniel Ricciardo targeting a return in Austin.

Ricciardo has been absent since breaking a bone in his hand during a crash in practice at the Dutch Grand Prix at the end of August, requiring surgery on the complex fracture.

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While recovery has gone smoothly so far, the timeline provided to the Australian was always indicating a return in the United States with an outside chance of Qatar, and despite a positive simulator session earlier this week, RACER understands the decision has been made to focus on Austin.

While Ricciardo could have attempted a comeback this weekend, any unforeseen issues on Friday would have heavily disrupted the rest of the event for both Lawson and AlphaTauri as it’s a Sprint weekend, meaning the rookie would have had to go straight into qualifying with his first laps had he not participated in FP1.

To ensure Lawson gets a clean run at the weekend, Ricciardo will continue his recovery for a further two weeks, allowing the New Zealander clarity on the plans. Ricciardo also doesn’t need to rush a return having already been confirmed alongside Yuki Tsunoda for 2024, with Lawson reverting to a reserve role for both Red Bull and AlphaTauri.

Lawson has impressed during his stand-in spell this season, scoring two points in Singapore and finishing ahead of team-mate Tsunoda after a race-long battle last time out in Japan.