Isack Hadjar is favourite to be Max Verstappen’s team-mate at Red Bull in 2026 after his incredible Formula 1 maiden podium at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Hadjar became the youngest Frenchman to stand on the podium at 20 years old and the fifth youngest in F1 history.
It was not a fluke either as Hadjar qualified fourth in his Racing Bulls and stuck with four-time world champion Max Verstappen throughout the 72 laps around Zandvoort.
Of course, Hadjar benefitted from Lando Norris‘ dramatic retirement which promoted him to third, but it was the performance itself which surely puts him on the verge of replacing Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull next year.
„I was being realistic and was honestly aiming for big points. That was the target,“ said Hadjar, who is 10th in the Drivers‘ Championship.
„I knew it would be very hard to fight Ferrari and Mercedes. But it was more like towards the last 20 laps I thought if anything happens at the front, then I’m on a podium position. And when Lando had the issue, I knew I was going to finish there.“
From Australian nightmare to rookie of the season
There was little expectation for Hadjar when he was announced to make the step up from Formula 2, where he was runner-up to champion Gabriel Bortoleto last year, to Racing Bulls.
His F1 career began in the worst possible manner though as he crashed out of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on the formation lap at the first chicane.
Hadjar was in tears and comforted by Lewis Hamilton’s father Anthony Hamilton as the world gave their immediate opinions on the rookie. However, Hadjar has since bounced back and arguably been the rookie of the season so far.
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He made back-to-back Q3 appearances at the next two races in Shanghai and Suzuka – two tracks he had never driven at – then scored points in Saudi Arabia, Imola, Monaco and Spain, making the last part of Qualifying at those European rounds.
His Racing Bulls team-mate Liam Lawson began to outperform him during some of the races prior to the summer break but Hadjar hit back in Zandvoort and has impressed Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, who signed him to the Red Bull junior programme in 2021.
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„We chose him because we knew he was something special. I call him a ‚Little Prost‘,“ Marko told Sky Sports F1.
„At the early stage people laughed often but now he’s delivered and what’s also impressive is he comes to a new circuit and after three laps he’s competitive.
„On Friday in Zandvoort, he had an engine problem and was not affected by that. He said, ‚I know I have the speed and I will qualify in the top five‘. He promised that, so his self-confidence is also outstanding.“
‚Fantastic‘ Hadjar in line to join Red Bull
Hadjar’s outright speed has been impressive as he leads Lawson 12-3 across all Qualifyings (including Sprint Qualifying) this year.
He drives aggressively too, which begs the question of whether the Frenchman could deal with the mammoth task of being Verstappen’s team-mate at Red Bull.
„He seems to be good under pressure. He doesn’t have much experience, even through the junior categories he’s climbed through very quickly,“ said 1997 F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve on Sky Sports F1.
„When he gets a beating, he stands up even stronger. He seems to be the real deal. I think he’s already in the big car [the Red Bull], it’s just a case of waiting to announce when.“
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Hadjar revealed he’s been looking up to Verstappen since his junior days and the Dutchman says Hadjar should be „proud“ of his podium.
„It’s fantastic. Honestly, coming in as a rookie is not easy with these cars,“ said Verstappen.
„For him to be on the podium here is fully deserved. I think he had a great weekend, but also drove a great race. And of course, also for the team, I think the whole season already they have been on it. And Isack is then finishing the job and that’s just fantastic to see.“
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Red Bull not expected to make final decision on Hadjar yet
Hadjar’s chances of a Red Bull seat are also boosted by Laurent Mekies replacing Christian Horner as team principal, given Mekies saw at first hand the quality of the rookie during his time in charge of Racing Bulls.
Red Bull have a recent history of announcing new drivers late in the year, with Sergio Perez and Liam Lawson signing contracts in December of 2020 and 2024 when they joined the Milton Keynes-based teams for the following season.
Mekies says Red Bull „have time“ to assess whether Hadjar should get the opportunity to replace Tsunoda, who the Red Bull boss believes is still on a „positive trend“ after scoring his first points in over three months at Zandvoort.
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„As much as we like the emotion of the race-by-race feeling, when you step back and look at it from a Red Bull perspective, they are our drivers, we have them all under contract. It’s only us making the decision,“ said Mekies.
„For the Red Bull group, why would you put yourself under pressure based on one result. We will take our time. There’s nine races to go.
„I’m not telling you we will wait until the last race because there’s a dynamic we want to let the driver know, but we have time.“
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