Formula One: New Zealander Liam Lawson to race for AlphaTauri until Daniel Ricciardo can return

New Zealander Liam Lawson will continue to race for AlphaTauri until Australian Daniel Ricciardo is fit to return, the Red Bull-ownedFormulaOneteam said on Monday. Ricciardo had surgery in Spain on Sunday after breaking his left hand in a crash in practice at the Dutch Grand Prix on Friday, with reserve driver Lawson drafted in for hisFormulaOnerace debut.

The next race, round 14, is the Italian Grand Prix at Monza on Sunday. Singapore follows on Sept. 17 and Japan on Sept. 24. "We are delighted that Daniel’s surgery went well and that he is now on the road to recovery," AlphaTauri said in a statement. "We hope to see him at the track again very soon, but until he is fully fit, we can confirm that Liam, who did a good job in difficult circumstances in Zandvoort, will continue to drive alongside Yuki (Tsunoda), starting from our home race this weekend in Monza." Lawson, 21, finished 13th in the Dutch Grand Prix, with Tsunoda 16th.

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APPLAUSE CONTINUE FOR SUPERSTAR MAX VERSTAPPEN

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner hailed Max Verstappen as "simply untouchable" after he secured a record-equalling ninth win in a row on Sunday and even his closest rivals were inclined to agree. Spaniard Fernando Alonso, who finished second for Aston Martin at Zandvoort in a race that went from dry to wet and back again, said the 25-year-old Dutch driver was operating on a higher level.

"It is underestimated sometimes what Max is achieving," Alonso, also a doubleFormulaOneworld champion but whose 32nd and last win was with Ferrari in 2013, told reporters. "I think you need to enter in a mood, in a state that you are connected with a car.

"Today, I felt that I was at my best and have been giving 100% of what I felt and my abilities on a racing car, but maybe in Spa I was not at that level or in Austria or something like that. "I think Max is achieving that 100% more often than us at the moment, than any of the drivers, so that's why he's dominating."

Verstappen has won 11 of the season's 13 races, 20 of the last 24, and the only lingering doubt about his third world championship is where he will secure it and with how many rounds to spare.

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