Super Formula Motegi
Motegi Super Formula race stopped as Lawson spin causes crash
The Motegi Super Formula race has been red-flagged after a spin for Red Bull junior Liam Lawson triggered a pile-up on the opening lap.
Rachit Thukral
Edited: Aug 20, 2023, 7:24 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
With front-row starter Kakunoshin Ota stalling on the grid, Lawson got on the aggressive and tried to pass polesitter Tomoki Nojiri for the lead of the race.
The two Mugen drivers ran side-by-side into Turn 2, with Lawson running wide and over the kerbs at the exit of the corner.
This sent the Kiwi spinning back on track, where he collected the cars of Tadasuke Makino and Yuhi Sekiguchi - both being sent airbone in the contact. Nobuharu Matsushita also got caught up in the melee after going wide over the track in a bid to avoid the incident.
The red flag was almost immediately deployed, with images showing Sekiguchi’s car landing upside down in the run-off area at the opposite side of the track.
Lawson was able to get his hobbled car back in the garage, but was heard furiously complaining about his team-mate Nojiri on the radio, claiming he pushed him off the track.
No action was taken against Nojiri, with the stewards clearing the two-time champion of any wrongdoing.
It remains unclear if Lawson will be able to rejoin the race, with his car having suffered extensive damage in the incident.
Lawson arrived in the seventh race of the season level on points with TOM’S rival Ritomo Miyata, who qualified eighth for the race.
The race is due to restart at 3:50pm local time.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Lawson "grateful" to qualify P3 after Motegi Q2 worries
Next article Motegi Super Formula: Nojiri wins, Lawson 13th after first-lap chaos
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Rachit Thukral
Why aerodynamics will become "even more important" under 2027 MotoGP regulations
MotoGP
MotoGP
Qatar GP
2 h
Why aerodynamics will become "even more important" under 2027 MotoGP regulations
Sebastien Bourdais hopes latest WEC success will remind teams of his value
WEC
WEC
Monza
3 h
Sebastien Bourdais hopes latest WEC success will remind teams of his value
Latest news
“I was getting beat up” – How Daniel Ricciardo burned out on ‘humiliating’ F1 return
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1 2 min
“I was getting beat up” – How Daniel Ricciardo burned out on ‘humiliating’ F1 return
Myers Riley Motorsports adds Andretti alongside returning Fraga for 2027 IMSA GTD campaign
IMSA
IMSA IMSA 27 min
Myers Riley Motorsports adds Andretti alongside returning Fraga for 2027 IMSA GTD campaign
Las Vegas GP reveals neon sign-inspired trophy design
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Las Vegas GP
1 h
Las Vegas GP reveals neon sign-inspired trophy design
IndyCar 2026 season review: Juncos Hollinger Racing
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 1 h
IndyCar 2026 season review: Juncos Hollinger Racing
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe