Liam Lawson finished ninth in the US Grand Prix sprint race, held in Austin, Texas.
Starting from 15th on the grid, Lawson avoided a dramatic crash on the first lap and worked his way up the field in an action-packed race.
The first corner saw a major accident involving McLaren teammates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, who are both near the top of the championship standings. Their race ended immediately after Piastri collided with another car and then crashed into Norris, knocking both out of the race.
Lawson, driving for Racing Bulls, stayed clear of the trouble. He overtook Pierre Gasly of Alpine on lap 10 and later gained another position after a penalty was given to Haas driver Ollie Bearman. That moved Lawson into ninth place, only one spot away from earning points.
At the front, Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the sprint easily. Starting from pole position, he kept his lead through the race, which ended behind the safety car after another crash between Lance Stroll and Esteban Ocon.
The crash that took out both McLaren drivers could affect the championship race. Piastri still leads Norris by 22 points, but with six races and two sprints left this season, anything can happen.
