Liam Lawson wary of Austin Turn 1 'lottery'

Pulse Sports Team 02:26 - 24 October 2026

Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson has labelled the opening corner of the United States Grand Prix a "lottery" due to the frequent multi-car pile-ups at the start.

Turn 1 at the Circuit of the Americas is a sharp hairpin, and with the field tightly bunched off the line, collisions are common. While some drivers inevitably lose out, others get lucky and make up substantial ground by steering clear of the chaos ahead.

"There's not much you can do; often, it's just a lottery. Last year—I think it was last year—Yuki (Tsunoda) passed half the grid, going from 16th to sixth in a single corner. Everyone collided, and he just survived and drove through. It's a very tricky corner. It's blind because it's on an uphill climb, you can't see the apex, and it's also extremely bumpy," Lawson explained regarding the risks at Turn 1.