Liam Lawson makes history with win in Super Formula debut

Liam Lawson has made history with his Super Formula debut in Japan this morning.

Lawson, who spent the past two years racing in Formula 2, made a statement in his first race in the Japanese Super Formula Championship by improving his third-place start on the grid to a race win.

The 21-year-old ran a patient race, using a midrace safety car to launch his attack to pass Mugen teammate and two-time defending series champion Tomoki Nojiri to take the lead and from their held on for the chequered flag.

With the win, Lawson became the first driver to triumph in their Super Formula debut since the series was created in 1996.

Lawson told Motorsport.com the feat hadn't "really sunk in yet".

“Very happy with the result, but talking about the history, it’s not something I had thought about beforehand," he said.

“The car just came to me, it felt really good. The balance was very even, I could keep pushing and didn’t have too much of an issue.

“This morning [in qualifying] it’s hard to say whether the car was perfect or not, because I was still learning the track. There’s more laptime in the car and now I have more experience I can hopefully be a bit more comfortable tomorrow [for the second race].”

Lawson, who remains a reserve driver for F1 powerhouse Red Bull, is back in action this afternoon for the second race at Fuji Speedway.