Lawson charges from 20th to seventh, Armstrong DNFs

Liam Lawson completed a brilliant recovery drive in the second Formula 2 sprint race at Baku, climbing from 20th to 7th.

The young New Zealander was left devastated after a crash in race one meant he would be compelled to start almost dead last for race two.

However, this is Baku.

A litter of crashes and safety car periods played into Lawson’s hands, and his sheer pace allowed him to pick off drivers one-by-one.

By lap eight, Lawson had made up 14 places and was in sixth.

Unfortunately, Lawson then experienced an engine drama with his Hitech car, costing him spots to Dan Ticktum and Oscar Piastri.

He would make up one further spot to cross the line in seventh, though he believes a podium wasn’t too far out of reach.

“The potential was honestly there for a podium,” he said. “I had really, really good pace.

“I was quicker than (Robert) Shwartzman and the cars in front, and I was ready to attack them, but just that little engine glitch, whatever it was. If it was me, it’s a silly mistake, but at least the pace was there.”

For the other Kiwi in the field, Marcus Armstrong, it was a race to forget.

Starting fourth, Armstrong dropped a spot off the line but looked comfortable running fifth.

However, Armstrong’s race ended when he ran out of room while battling Bent Viscaal, and he crashed into the barrier.

Juri Vips won the race, making it the Estonian’s maiden F2 victory.

The weekend’s final race will be the points-heavy feature race, where Lawson will start on pole and Armstrong will line up sixth.

That race starts at 8.45 pm NZT tonight.