Before the 2025 Formula 1 season began, ExxonMobil expanded its long-time partnership with the Red Bull family, becoming the Official Fuel Partner of sister team Visa Cash App Racing Bulls.
The Racing Bulls team is now supported by ExxonMobil's Trackside Laboratory, a bespoke lab at the track that analyzes fuel and lubricant samples then deports data back to the team to detect any indications of engine wear or deterioration.
Now both Red Bull and Racing Bulls are able to benefit from the fuel technology designed by the same product development team behind the Synergy gasoline available at Exxon and Mobil branded stations across the United States.
Liam Lawson talks ExxonMobil, 'cool opportunity' for fans
Liam Lawson, who has been with the Red Bull family since 2019, currently competes full-time for Racing Bulls after spending the 2025 season's first two races with Red Bull, and he spoke to Beyond the Flag about this enhanced partnership with ExxonMobil ahead of this weekend's Miami Grand Prix, the first of three United States races on the 2025 schedule.
"Obviously it's an exciting partnership, one that we have with Red Bull Racing as well, so it's obviously positive for us as a team," Lawson said. "It's very close in Formula 1 at the moment, so I think the small margins make a big difference."
He believes that enhanced technology can give his team the edge they need to come out on top in some of their tight qualifying and race battles with the margins as small as they currently are across the 10-team, 20-car grid.
"It’s really those small margins that obviously help," he said of ExxonMobil's support. "We are trying to find the smallest amount of lap time right now, especially this year. The difference between one or two tenths can put you out in Q1 versus being in Q3 and starting at the top end of the grid so it's obviously all the small things that make a big difference."
The Synergy Supreme+ premium gasoline is ExxonMobil’s most advanced fuel ever, and it has been engineered to keep your engine three times cleaner for better gas mileage, engine protection and enhanced performance so you can fill up with confidence, based on a comparison of Synergy Supreme+ gas compared to Synergy regular gas in port fuel injected engines.
This is technology that fans, including Lawson when he's driving his street car, can take advantage of on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis.
"When I'm in America, yeah," he said when asked if he fills up his tank with ExxonMobil fuel. "It's a cool opportunity for people as well to be able to use the same synergy fuel that that we use in the race car."
Liam Lawson previews Miami Grand Prix
Though he has competed in the United States before, he has never before competed at Miami International Autodrome. He is looking forward to his first attempts at the 19-turn, 3.363-mile (5.412-kilometer) temporary street circuit around Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida in this weekend's sprint race and Miami Grand Prix.
"I think it's a cool layout," he said. "The track itself is a cool layout. I think the racing can be can be okay; they obviously have a long straight, or two long straights really, to overtake, but it's very mixed. There are a couple of high speed sections at the start of the lap in sector one, and then some very slow speed stuff, like some very, very slow speed stuff, where you're using curbs and little chicanes, a bit like a street circuit like Singapore or somewhere like that.
"Setting up the car can be quite tough for a track like this, but for us, it's exciting to try to obviously optimize all those different sections."
Lawson has had success at a number of venues in his first start, including the aforementioned Singapore race which saw him finish P9 in just his third career Grand Prix weekend back in 2023.
In the United States, he had similar success, scoring P9 at Circuit of the Americas in his first start of the 2024 season after having never before competed in a Formula 1 Grand Prix at the track.
Can confidence from past first-time success ultimately help deliver the 23-year-old New Zealander his first points of the 2025 season?
“Potentially, but honestly, it's so different; each weekend is very, very different," Lawson admitted. "There are obviously a lot of variables in Formula 1 that you're dealing with, so nothing's ever really certain.
"You can have a good feeling about a weekend, but obviously we work hard to put ourselves in the best mind spaces before each weekend, so each time you get in the car, we're obviously feeling as good as we can. But obviously with everything that comes into a Formula 1 session, there are no guarantees."
That said, he does have some confidence heading into South Florida.
"I feel good about the weekend. It's a track that I'm looking forward to driving and one that the team's been quick at in the past, so I'm excited, but obviously you know there are no guarantees."
Saturday's sprint race is set to be shown live on ESPN from Miami International Autodrome beginning at 11:55 a.m. ET, and Sunday's Miami Grand Prix is set to be shown live on ABC beginning at 3:55 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV and don't miss it!