Johny Herbert Disagrees With AlphaTauri Driver Decision

Friday, 06 October 2023 at 10:00

Updated at Saturday, 18 November 2023 at 21:47

Former F1 driver Johnny Herbert commented on the driver situation in the AlphaTauri team in his recent interview.

Four drivers have exchanged in the seat of AlphaTauri throughout the 2023 season. It all began with Nyck De Vries, who did not perform according to the team's expectations and separated from the team after the first ten races of the season. This triggered an unexpected comeback of Daniel Ricciardo.

However, the Honey Badger had an accident in a free practice for his third Grand Prix of the season - the Dutch Grand Prix. Ricciardo suffered an injury that made him unable to race in the following five races, and out of the blue, Liam Lawson got his chance to race in Formula One as a substitute for Ricciardo during his time away.

Liam Lawson has been performing extraordinarily in AlphaTauri since this is a unique chance for the driver from New Zealand to prove himself to everybody. Former British Formula One driver and a winner of 24 Hours of Le Mans - Johny Herbert, shared his impression of Liam Lawson to Motorsport Magazine:

"What I like is that ability to jump in and do the job straight away. It's actually a rare thing when someone gets a hold of a car and does what we actually expect of them In Singapore, at what most drivers say is the most difficult track on the calendar both physically and mentally, he was very impressive and scored his first points in his third Grand Prix"

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During the Singapore Grand Prix, Lawson also scored the best result for the AlphaTauri team since the beginning of the season. Herbert does not seem to agree with Alpha Tauri signing Ricciardo for the season 2024 after the recent performances of Liam Lawson.

"His] team-mate Yuki Tsunoda has done a good job too – but I feel Liam already has taken control at AlphaTauri. For me, he earned a seat for 2024. I don't agree with the decision of AlphaTauri to bring Daniel Ricciardo back for next year. Is he the future? No – Liam is the future"