Having secured a seat at Red Bull for 2026, Isack Hadjar faces Formula 1's most daunting challenge: becoming Max Verstappen's teammate. It's a clash of realities that the Frenchman approaches with rare—and almost unsettling—lucidity.
The decision came on the eve of the Abu Dhabi final: Isaac Hadjar will pilot for Red Bull in 2026. At 21, the Frenchman leaves Racing Bulls to join the top team on the grid, replacing Yuki Tsunoda. A prestigious promotion, but also the most perilous one there is: to confront, from the inside, Max Verstappen.
For seven years, the second seat Red Bull has become a trap. Gasly, Albon, Pérez, Lawson, Tsunoda…all of them have tried and failed, to varying degrees. Alone Sergio PérezDrawing on his experience, he managed to resist for a while before giving way, swept away by the technical evolution of a single-seater designed around Verstappen.
Isack Hadjar: the rookie year that forced Red Bull to make a decision
Isaac Hadjar It doesn't happen by chance. His first full season in Formula 1 with Racing Bulls It made a lasting impression: consistent points, strategic maturity, and a first podium finish at Zandvoort. Enough to convince. Red Bull that it was time to try something else.
But the Frenchman knows exactly where he's going.
One of its few advantages is called 2026. A completely new regulation that will reshuffle the cards.
"It's not like Max They already knew the car; we're all starting from scratch.
For Hadjar, The timing is perfect:
« This is the best possible timing. I feel very, very lucky to be joining Red Bull this way. If the car goes in a certain direction, I'll be there to validate it too. »
A technical reset, yes. A hierarchical reset, no.
Where many have gotten burned, Hadjar He adopts a radically different stance. He does not promise an immediate feat. He almost rules it out.
"If there's one goal, it's to accept that I'll be slower the first month."
A phrase that's almost taboo at this level.
"It's going to be very frustrating. Looking at the data and seeing things you can't do yet... But if you know that, then you're better prepared."
Even with a change in regulations, Hadjar he has no illusions about the scale of the task.
"If I came in with another year of these regulations, no chance."
And on Verstappen For him, the observation is clear: "He doesn't have a driving style. He adapts to what he's given, and that's what makes him strong."
"He will be just as strong with next year's car as he was with this year's, and the one before. He is constantly adapting."
This lucidity is not resignation, he insists. It is a strategy.
“Everyone arrives thinking, ‘He’s a human, I’m going to beat him.’ And then you get crushed. And that’s when the snowball effect begins.”
Hadjar wants to break this cycle.
“If you arrive thinking, ‘I’m very far behind,’ it will be better for your progress. We’re talking about the best driver on the grid. The probability that I’ll be slow at the beginning is very high. I might as well accept it now.”
This approach is part of a trait already well known in the paddock: the almost excessive self-demand of the Frenchman.
"During qualifying, I'm always frustrated. I never feel like I've done a perfect lap."
"It was only my first year, and perhaps I was too hard on myself. I put a lot of pressure on myself, and sometimes that leads to mistakes."
Red Bull don't bet on a driver who promises to beat VerstappenShe's betting on a pilot who knows why so many others have failed.
Lucid, self-critical, ambitious without being arrogant, Isaac Hadjar He arrives mentally prepared for a situation where raw talent alone is no longer enough. The question remains whether this cold honesty will be sufficient to survive – and perhaps, one day, to exist – against the most dominant driver of his generation.
