RB Formula 1 team CEO Peter Bayer says that Liam Lawson’s grid penalty at the US GP allowed his engineers “to go a bit extreme” on the setup of his VCARB 01.
After a disappointing sprint the team tried something different heading into qualifying as it tried to optimise the latest upgrade package, which included a revised floor.
As Lawson was destined to start at the back of the grid due to his PU change penalty there was little to lose by taking a risk.
The changes worked and the New Zealander duly made his point by earning a token third place in Q1 before putting in a charging drive from 19th to ninth in the race itself.
In so doing he earned two valuable points on a weekend when Haas scored seven and moved ahead in the battle for sixth place in the championship.
“I said to Laurent [Mekies] on the pit wall it’s true we have lost the lead, but we have gained again performance,” Bayer told this writer. “And I think the guys, Alan [Permane] and the team, did a very, very good job in bringing this new floor.
“And especially what happened in qualifying with Liam, because they had no pressure on Liam’s car, and they went a bit extreme on the setup, just trying some stuff. And that’s really what unlocked a lot of performance.”
Bayer was full of praise for Lawson’s drive into the points.
“What a statement!,” he said. “First weekend in the car. And honestly, we thought that probably with the penalty that P3 in Q1, that was a high, and we should be proud and happy.
“Obviously he did a very good job in Turn 1, there with a bit of turmoil, and he kept it clean. And then, honestly, he was faultless in the end.
“He did very good laps, good pace. I think what played into his hands is that the overcut was a lot stronger than we thought.
“Obviously, with the hard, we were expecting to go long, but the way it turned out was definitely more than what we had calculated for.
“So that was great. And then in the end he was managing it really well. And he also said he felt very comfortable in the car. He was working a lot more with the switches than he usually would have done. Overall a very, very impressive performance.”
Bayer believes that despite dropping behind Haas in Austin RB will ultimately be able to recover sixth place.
“We have to be careful, but so far, we believe that we’re ready to fight until the end,” he said. “It’s a very long straight here. Also I felt in the debrief that the guys put their smiles back on their faces, and so they’re confident.
“To see that you have a car that when everything works well, and the driver is capable of exploiting that to the maximum, that you can put it on P3 in Q1 that gives me the confidence to take the fight to those guys.”
Adam Cooper F1 