Kiwi Liam Lawson has achieved arguably the biggest win of his fledgling career, taking his second Japanese Super Formula chequered flag and the championship lead at Oita's Autopolis.
The Red Bull-backed driver has moved from third to first in the championship standings, with 57 points from his opening four races, holding a four-point advantage over second-placed Ritomo Miyata and 15 points clear of teammate Tomoki Nojiri.
Driving in his fourth race for Team Mugen, Lawson, 21, led his outfit in the absence of teammate and reigning Super Formula champion Nojiri, out with illness.
After qualifying second on the grid, he took the lead inside the final 10 laps, defending first place against Miyata of Valentin Team TOM, who had fresher tyres after a late pitstop.
While Lawson has already won once in Japan during his Super Formula debut, his latest victory comes after Red Bull head of driver development Dr Helmut Marko backed him to step into Formula One, should Alpha Tauri swing the axe on Dutchman Nyck de Vries.
Starting on the front row, Lawson dropped to third on the first corner, but a successful undercut strategy saw him pass polesitter Sho Tsuboi, before a safety car consolidated the his lead.
And despite pressure from Miyata behind him, after he moved from third to second by getting past Tsuboi, Lawson kept his composure to drive home for his second chequered flag of 2023.
The Super Formula season continues on the weekend of June 16 at Sportsland Sugo.
