Hitech GP score race win and 3rd place in Formula 2 season opener, making a thunderous start to the season

Hitech’s Red Bull junior Liam Lawson scored his first ever Formula 2 race win in the opening round of the 2021 season in Bahrain, also taking a P3 finish which saw him back on the podium for a second time over the weekend.

In his Formula 2 debut, Lawson used all of his experience to take a hard-earned first Sprint Race win from P3 in Sakhir. He brushed off a stern challenge from fellow Red Bull driver Daruvala in a defensive masterclass.

“That was pretty awesome. Starting third, I had a pretty good start and led from that moment onwards. I had massive pressure from Jehan towards the end of the race.” Lawson said.

Luck was not on Vips’ side over the weekend as a mechanical-based penalty in qualifying resulted in his times being removed and demoting him to the back of the grid for Sprint Race 1 and the Feature Race, despite qualifying P5. Putting all that aside, the Estonian showcased his raw pace and ability in the first Sprint Race, managing a P10 finish from P22. This was enough to put him on reverse grid pole for Sprint Race 2, in an all-new format for the 2021 season – determined by reversing the top 10 finishers of Sprint Race 1.

Saturday afternoon’s Sprint Race 2 was one to forget for both Red Bull juniors as Lawson became caught up in contact from another driver, forcing him to spin off the track and retire from the race entirely. Vips lead the majority of the race after starting on pole, but a late technical issue on the final lap resulted in P16 as he crossed the line.

The Feature Race on Sunday saw Lawson secure P3 in a hard-earned battle for the final podium spot after starting P8. In an unfortunate turn of events, Vips was handed a 5-second time penalty during the race due to “leaving the track and gaining an advantage”, demoting him to P13.

Following an impressive points haul in Bahrain, Hitech will head to Monaco on the 20 -22 May for Round 2 of the FIA Formula 2 Championship.