WATCH: Emotional Liam Lawson reveals his family's sacrifice for F1 journey

Kiwi driver Liam Lawson has opened up about the personal cost of making it to Formula 1, the sacrifices his family made along the way and admitting the toll social media has had during his career.

Speaking on the 'High Performance' Podcast, the Kiwi Racing Bulls driver - currently in the top 10 of F1 drivers' standings - recalled the emotional moment he realised his career affected his family.

Liam shared he felt he'll never "repay the amount of sacrifice that [they made]... and it's not just about money."

His parents recently rediscovered a card his younger brother had written to their dad at five years old, which highlighted the significant time their father had invested in Liam's racing career.

"Dear dad, if I like racing, will you spend more time with me? Like Liam?" the card read.

While his brother jokes about it now, Liam said it highlights just how much his family gave up to help him reach F1.

Fighting back tears, Liam said, "My siblings and my family have just given up so much… never going on a holiday, never doing anything… I have an amazing family.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Liam explained the biggest cost of his career - his happiness.

"It sounds quite sad," he said.

"I think people probably think you're a lot happier because of the position I'm in, and don't get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t understand how lucky I am to be here, but because of that thing that we're so focused and driven towards, I feel like I'm not happy until I do it or until I achieve it."

“I have happy moments for sure. It's not that I'm not happy all the time, but it's overall in life, at the moment."

Liam also explained why he stepped away from social media, saying the constant rumours and criticism became overwhelming.

"There are so many opinions and rumours and things that go around that are just so untrue, and if you really focus on every single one, it would drive you crazy," he said.

"You can't even imagine some of the stuff that people are saying... just the most horrible things."

While he's since reinstalled some apps, Liam said he's much more careful about what he chooses to engage with online.

It’s a reminder that Liam is still human with real feelings, and not everything is as it appears - there’s a lot more behind the driver and the race standings.