Lawson said he was unsure whether Leclerc’s late São Paulo pass was legal

“I don't know if it is legal or not,” Liam Lawson said after Charles Leclerc passed him for seventh in the São Paulo Grand Prix. Lawson said they would review the move, but called their battle good overall.

In wet conditions on lap 69 of 71, Leclerc's right-front tyre made contact with Lawson's left-rear tyre at Turn 12, forcing Lawson wide. Lawson said he thought Leclerc's wing had hit his tyre and that they had been lucky. Lawson stayed ahead into Turn 1, but Leclerc moved in front for seventh on the road at Turn 4 on the next lap.

Lawson compared the move to Leclerc's pass on Alex Albon in the 2017 GP2 race at Abu Dhabi, saying it was the same kind of manoeuvre and might be a Leclerc speciality.

Lawson started third and made up a place at Turn 1, briefly considering an attack on race leader Kimi Antonelli. Once the pace settled, he said, the cars ahead were quicker; he began to fall back and his tyres were taking more damage than theirs.