Rising Star’s Ambition and Strategic Move
Isack Hadjar, the young talent from Racing Bulls, has expressed a desire to test the Red Bull Formula 1 car ahead of what is expected to be his promotion for the 2026 season. The 21-year-old driver has made a significant impact in the 2025 campaign, currently sitting in ninth place in the championship with a notable podium finish at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Hadjar has consistently outperformed his teammate Liam Lawson and even challenged Red Bull’s struggling driver Yuki Tsunoda, who is currently in 17th place and fighting to secure his future in the final six rounds of 2025. Despite Tsunoda’s performance, Hadjar is anticipated to join Max Verstappen at Red Bull’s sister team in 2026 when F1 introduces its new technical regulations.
Hadjar has long aspired for a seat with Red Bull but previously stated he felt unprepared to make the move in 2025. However, during the United States Grand Prix in Austin, he appeared more open to the idea. When asked if he would be interested in competing in the last three races of the year for Red Bull, Hadjar responded positively, stating it could be beneficial if given the opportunity.
A New Perspective on Testing
The prospect of testing the Red Bull car was further discussed, with Hadjar acknowledging that it would allow him to familiarize himself with the new engineers. “It definitely helps,” he said. “I didn’t think about this, to be honest. That’s interesting. It’s a good idea.”
Red Bull had previously indicated that it plans to announce its 2026 line-ups across both teams by the Mexico Grand Prix, which follows the US GP on 24-26 October. However, Hadjar admitted he wasn’t aware of this timeline but emphasized that it doesn’t affect his approach to racing.
“I’ve been saying it a million times. Maybe a lot of talking, but when you’re strapped in the car, and I drive, I really don’t think about something else than just doing the best I can do. That’s it,” Hadjar explained.
Team Dynamics and Future Uncertainty
Liam Lawson also mentioned that the team hasn’t provided him with a specific timeline, although he finds himself in a similar situation to Tsunoda, fighting for his place in the championship. This uncertainty is due to the expected promotion of Arvid Lindblad into Racing Bulls next year, leaving only one seat available alongside the 18-year-old Red Bull junior.
Despite these challenges, Lawson remains focused on his performance, highlighting that this has been the theme of his career since his debut as a substitute for Daniel Ricciardo at the 2023 Dutch GP.
“It’s my entire career in Formula 1 so far, not that it’s been very long but that’s how it’s been,” Lawson said. “It’s how I came into the sport last year, it’s how things have always been and it’s something that we’re exposed to from a young age in the junior programme. We’re put under this pressure, we’re always on a performance-based programme and it’s designed to put us under pressure so it’s nothing new honestly.”
