The incident happened early in Sunday’s race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. On the opening lap, Lawson made contact with Carlos Sainz at Turn 1, which forced him to pit for repairs. After rejoining the race on Lap 3, he approached the same corner again just as two marshals were clearing debris from the track. As he came around the bend, they suddenly crossed in front of him, forcing the Kiwi to react instantly to avoid a serious accident.

Lawson narrowly missed both marshals and shouted over the team radio that he “could have f***ing killed them.” Moments later, he retired from the race due to the earlier damage to his car.

After the Grand Prix, Mexico’s motorsport federation, OMDAI, issued a statement placing full blame on Lawson for the near-miss. However, the FIA quickly launched its own investigation and released a response saying the driver had done nothing wrong. The governing body confirmed that telemetry from Lawson’s car showed he slowed down appropriately and obeyed the double yellow flags displayed in the area. The data revealed that he braked earlier than on other laps and passed through Turn 1 at a much slower speed than racing pace.

In its official statement, the FIA said:

“Whilst the investigation remains ongoing, we acknowledge that any situation where marshals find themselves on track in front of oncoming cars is something we never want to see, and hence it is natural that such an incident will provoke concern and numerous comments.

“It is fortunate this incident did not result in any serious consequences, but we are conducting an internal investigation to understand exactly what happened and to identify any areas where procedures can be improved.

“We are collaborating openly and transparently for this purpose with the OMDAI (Mexican Automobile Club) and with Racing Bulls Formula One Team, with the ultimate objective to achieve our common aim, which is to always improve the safety of our sport.

“As with all serious incidents, the full analysis will take some time, as it involves collecting and reviewing all relevant evidence, including radio communications in multiple languages from the various parties involved, and synchronising all of these diverse inputs. The findings will be shared once the review is complete.

“Having analysed the telemetry from the incident, we can confirm that the driver of Car 30, Liam Lawson, slowed appropriately and reacted correctly to the double yellow flags displayed in the area, braking earlier than in other laps and passing significantly slower than racing speed into Turn 1. He is not at fault in this incident.

“Finally, we would like to express our sincere thanks to the volunteers and marshals for their professionalism and dedication, as without them, our sport could not operate safely.”

The FIA added that although its full investigation is still ongoing, Lawson handled the situation correctly and responsibly. It also said it will continue working with OMDAI and Racing Bulls to review what went wrong and to strengthen safety procedures to prevent such incidents in the future.