Isack Hadjar is one of six new full-time drivers on the F1 grid in 2025. The Frenchman will be keen to make an impression this season.
The 20-year-old lost the F2 title last year to fellow 2025 F1 rookie Gabriel Bortoleto after he suffered mechanical issues at the final race in Abu Dhabi.
Nevertheless, the Frenchman displayed some great performances in the junior category. Hadjar won four races – the most of any driver – and eight podiums.
Now, the Red Bull junior has been afforded his chance in F1 after the sacking of Sergio Perez. With Liam Lawson moving from Racing Bulls to partner Max Verstappen, Hadjar has taken the Kiwi driver’s place at the Faenza-based squad.
The Frenchman has already begun preparations with Racing Bulls to get accustomed to the team’s setup. Hadjar displayed ‘extreme consistency’ in his first test and showed ‘mastery’ in low grip conditions.
This is an encouraging start for the 20-year-old and he will be looking to carry that momentum into pre-season testing in Bahrain later in February and for the first race of the season in Melbourne.
Isack Hadjar is only comparing himself to Yuki Tsunoda in 2025
Red Bull is notorious for being cutthroat with their drivers – promoting and demoting them from their main and junior teams, or dropping them entirely.
Hadjar will want to avoid the same fate as the likes of Nyck de Vries, Daniel Ricciardo and Perez have suffered in the last few years. But the Frenchman will have to battle against teammate Yuki Tsunoda to impress Red Bull.
The Japanese driver is entering his fifth season with Racing Bulls after being snubbed by Lawson for the second Red Bull seat – despite outperforming him last season. Christian Horner says Red Bull will keep tabs on Tsunoda in 2025 as the 24-year-old hopes to land a seat with the Milton Keynes-based outfit.
But Hadjar will be looking to get his foot in the door at Red Bull and go up against his teammate. Speaking on the LeBouseuh YouTube channel, the 20-year-old says Tsunoda is his ‘best point of comparison’ in 2025.
When asked what his focus is for this season, Hadjar replied: “It’s trying to stand out, trying to…” before the interviewer interrupted and said: “to show beautiful things”.
To which Hadjar said: “For sure, you see, I’m conscious I don’t have a car to win races directly.
“But it’s more, that’s it, it’s [to] stand out, to be quite impressive on the track. I have a great teammate to compare myself to, see I have Yuki.
“He has experience and he’s ultimately my best point of comparison, you see”.
Is Isack Hadjar already under pressure from Red Bull?
Being a rookie in F1 will bring its own pressure for Hadjar. Joining the Red Bull setup will place more expectations on his shoulders to perform, or he could face losing his seat.
Hadjar faces the ‘stupid’ challenge of learning Racing Bulls’ 2025 car and he also must go up against Tsunoda, who is well-established with the team and outperformed both Ricciardo and Lawson last season.
Harry Benjamin fears Hadjar will ‘struggle’ in 2025 and if he does, Red Bull may already have his replacement lined up.
Helmut Marko is aiming to get Arvid Lindblad an FIA superlicense before the start of the season. The 17-year-old will be racing in F2 this season as Hadjar’s replacement at Campos.
Horner did not originally plan to promote Hadjar to Racing Bulls, which suggests he is not convinced by the Frenchman. If he fails to deliver in 2025, Lindblad could find himself on the F1 grid.
