The Formula 1 grid features six rookie drivers for the first time since 2010 this year but Marc Surer did not expect one star would be ‘so strong’ so soon into their first season.
Teams sent the driver market into overdrive throughout last year as they set the grid for the 2025 F1 season. Lewis Hamilton leaving Mercedes for Ferrari kicked the market off, and also saw one rookie in Andrea Kimi Antonelli get a seat as he replaced the seven-time champion.
Red Bull terminating Sergio Perez’s contract in December also saw two rookies earn seats on the grid as Liam Lawson moving from Racing Bulls paved the route for Isack Hadjar. Yet they are now teammates at Racing Bulls after Yuki Tsunoda replaced Lawson at Red Bull in Japan.
Another rookie also faces an uncertain future as Jack Doohan fears the Japanese Grand Prix was his last race for Alpine. In contrast, Audi now plans to keep Sauber ace Gabriel Bortoleto in 2026 after his impressive rookie performances convinced the brand against replacing him.
Isack Hadjar is exceeding Marc Surer’s rookie expectations after his P8 in the Japanese Grand Prix
Haas rookie Oliver Bearman has impressed Jacques Villeneuve, too, as the Briton enjoys his first campaign as a full-time driver like Lawson. Yet how Hadjar has started his time as an F1 driver has impressed Surer, who doubted the Racing Bulls talent being ‘so strong’ this early.
Hadjar scored his first F1 points at Suzuka last Sunday in only his third outing after finishing the Japanese Grand Prix in eighth place. The 20-year-old had qualified in seventh but lost a place to his hero Hamilton on Lap 6, before running largely alone for the remaining 47 laps.
READ MORE: Who is Racing Bulls 2025 F1 driver Isack Hadjar? Everything you need to know
Surer was familiar with the Frenchman’s talent after watching Hadjar finish second behind Bortoleto for the 2024 F2 title by 22.5 points. But the ex-Brabham F1 driver did not expect to see Hadjar performing at such a level in F1 yet after also coming 11th in the Chinese GP.
“I always watch all the Formula 2 races,” Surer has told Blick. “He already showed his talent there last year, but I wouldn’t have thought he would be so strong in Formula 1 right away. But Isack is driving really well.”
Isack Hadjar is showing a new lease of life in F1 after needing a season to adapt in junior categories
Hadjar often needed a season to adapt to a new championship throughout his junior career before reaching Formula 1 as a Red Bull prospect this year. He fought for the French F4 title, Formula Regional Asia Championship and F2 title amid his second campaign in each series.
However, his Formula 2 title bid last year proved Hadjar could adapt to a new car quickly as F2 introduced a new chassis last year. He also took the title fight down to the final race but stalling on the grid for the Feature Race at the Abu Dhabi GP denied Hadjar any real hopes.
Now, the Paris native is showing what he can offer in F1 and exceeding Surer’s expectations after Hadjar responded impressively to crashing on the formation lap for the Australian GP on debut. Hadjar was even only 0.014s shy of out-qualifying Antonelli for the Japanese GP.
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