Kiwi hopeful Liam Lawson admits his mother has been a reluctant spectator through his brief Formula One foray this year.
Lawson, 21, has enjoyed a breakout year in his motorsport career, stepping into Daniel Ricciardo's Alpha Tauri seat, after the Aussie broke his hand during practice at the Dutch Grand Prix in August.
In Ricciardo's absence, he contested five races, gaining two championship points with a ninth placing at Singapore, but was still overlooked, when the team confirmed Ricciardo and Japanese Yuki Tsunoda as their fulltime drivers for 2024.
Lawson beat Tsunoda in four of the five races he started.
With Formula One cars travelling speeds of up to 350kph, the danger element is high, but Lawson revealed to AM Show that his family probably worry more about the risks than he does.
"My mum [Kristy Lawson] can finally watch part of the race," he said. "She's never really watched races... the first thing was she would watch the replay, when she knew the result.
"Now I think she can kind of watch the race when it's on, but not all of it.
"As a driver, it's something you can't think about. It's a big commitment and big risk, and if there's any part of your brain that's slightly concerned or you're not 100 percent there, that's going to cost lap time and performance."
Lawson has previously voiced his frustration at languishing in pitlane, after gaining a taste of the dream, but seems resigned to staying with Alpha Tauri and sister team Red Bull Racing as a reserve driver next year.
While he spend much of this year honing his racing skills in the Japanese Super Formula circuit, where he finished second, the Kiwi confirms he will be totally focused on his F1 role in 2024.
"Obviously, I need to keep driving, but at the moment, I will be reserve and trying to work on a fulltime seat in future."
Lawson admits he watches a race differently now he has had experience behind the wheel.
"It's always been a really important thing for anyone that is going to step into Formula One, it's been great for me to be a reserve for the past year or two years," he told AM. "There's no way I could have stepped in this year, if I hadn't done that.
"I definitely have a different view of that now, because I know things and I know situations. Before, something could happen and I didn't really know, because I hadn't experienced it, but now I have a bit more of an understanding.
"Now I'm probably gaining more from it and learning more from it. In this sport, there's always so much to absorb - so many situations and so many people involved, you're always learning."
Watch the video for the full interview
