{'I could have killed them' - Lawson encounters close call with F1 track officials
Formula 1 driver Liam Lawson disclosed he came dangerously close to a life-threatening accident during Sunday's F1 event in Mexico when a pair of track officials darted across the track immediately ahead of his car
The alarming incident happened on the third lap when safety workers were seen on the racing surface as Lawson was returning to the race following an premature pit stop to replace his broken nose section
Driver's Immediate Reaction
Immediately after, the team's competitor Lawson communicated to his race engineer saying: "Is this for real? Did you just see that? I might have... taken their lives"
"I genuinely couldn't process what I was seeing"
"I rejoined with a new set of hards, and then I approached Turn One and unexpectedly appeared two individuals sprinting across the track"
"I came close to striking one of them, honestly, it was so dangerous"
Security Issues Highlighted
"Obviously there's been a communication breakdown somehow but I've never experienced that before, and I can't recall observing that in the past. It's completely unacceptable"
"We fail to grasp how on a live track marshals can be allowed to just run across the track in that manner. I have no idea why, I'm certain we'll get some sort of explanation, but this absolutely cannot recur"
Governing Body Reviewing
The sport's regulatory authority, the FIA, is thoroughly reviewing the events
"Subsequent to a first corner event, track officials was notified that wreckage remained on the track at the critical section of that bend" commented the regulatory authority
"On lap three, safety personnel were notified and placed on standby to access the circuit and remove the wreckage once all cars had passed"
"As soon as it became apparent that Lawson had entered the pits, the instructions to dispatch marshals were rescinded and a caution signal was shown in that zone"
"We are still investigating what transpired following that moment"