WHEN IS A DOOR NOT A DOOR? WHEN IT’S HADJAR
Isack Hadjar’s stock has never been higher in F1 after his smoothly accomplished podium finish at Zandvoort last weekend. Obviously there are many questions hanging in the air since he finished right behind Max Verstappen, while Max’s Red Bull Racing team-mate Yuki Tsunoda finished…
Hang on a second while we look this up…
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Ah yes, 10th, that was it.
So, besides various nitwittery around whether Max would actually have been better off driving the Racing Bulls car this year rather than the tetchy RB21, there have been natural questions over when/if Hadjar could be promoted to the senior team. And whether he would want to go – or, rather, when he would want to be promoted, since driving the RB21 is a career-limiting poison chalice unless your name is Max Verstappen.
Our man Ronald Vording pitched this question to Isack: “Some months ago you said, ‘I’m not sure if I would be ready to step to Red Bull Racing.’ How is that now? Do you feel ready for Red Bull in 26 and if so, what has changed in the last couple of months?”
Hadjar replied: “To be honest, at the start of the year, they were asking me if I was feeling ready to jump in the Red Bull this year. And the answer is still no, because I don’t see the point of doing that right now.
“But ’26 is a different question because it’s a brand new start for the team.There won’t be this talk of the second car thing. This wouldn’t be a thing because it’s a brand new car for everyone.
“You will be in a phase where you need to direct the car into the right direction. So no, I think this is actually interesting.”
He also said of the putative promotion: “It’s obviously something I have in mind. There’s nine races left to prove I can keep doing a very good job.”
And also: “If I start getting beaten every race weekend until the end of the year, then it’s not going to be good for me.”
Hadjar emphasised that he’s “not in a rush” to nail down a 2026 deal.
Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Anni Graf – Formula 1 via Getty Images
