Lawson highlights importance of simulator work in F1
With many young drivers now trying to make a name for themselves in Formula 1, Liam Lawson has highlighted the importance of access to simulators as a factor in keeping them prepared for races.Liam Lawson has revealed that the sophistication of F1 simulators has allowed young drivers to develop rapidly in real cars at a time when testing opportunities are diminishing.
The hours devoted to pre-season and in-season testing have been significantly reduced in recent years due to cost-saving measures.
Teams will be required to allocate four practice sessions instead of two from next year to allow rookie drivers more track experience with up-to-date cars.
Lawson said many drivers have been involved in a team’s young driver programme before making the step into F1, giving them access to their facilities, which is crucial in the current F1 environment.
“I think we are not doing too much testing,” Lawson told the media.
“I know years ago you could test whenever you wanted, you had test cars and things like that.”
“It would be great if we could do that now. Obviously, that’s not how sports are right now.”
“That’s why the work we do behind the scenes with data and preparing for an event is, I would say, mostly simulator work,” he said.
Lawson has been called up for the rest of the season to replace Daniel Ricciardo at RB and he said the work he has done behind the scenes has kept him fit. He added:
“Each team has its own simulator that they have developed and are working on”
“And it’s basically about trying to make it as realistic as possible. That’s why we spend a long time as a reserve driver or even in Formula 3 and Formula 2 so that we start to get into Formula 1 practice and prepare for a Formula 1 race.”
Lawson stated that the preparations made on the simulator to race in Formula 1 are becoming more realistic with each passing year, and added, “For this reason, our access is now getting easier every year.”
“So it makes it a little bit easier for us to get on the track. But it’s still very different and there’s a lot of work that we do behind the scenes that people probably don’t see…” he said.
