Max Verstappen could see himself with a new teammate next season if Yuki Tsunoda does not improve his performance.
The Japanese driver was parachuted in from Racing Bulls after just two races this season, replacing Liam Lawson, who Red Bull felt was not yet ready to make the jump to the senior team.
Tsunoda had a one-year deal left on his contract with Racing Bulls before he was expected to leave for a potential reserve drive role elsewhere on the grid, as Red Bull were not intending to keep him.
But his promotion to Red Bull gives him a rare opportunity to prove himself, but so far, he is not living up to expectations. Tsunoda has only scored four points so far at Red Bull, a massive difference from Verstappen’s 136 points.
Discussing who is likely to partner Verstappen if he decides to stay at Red Bull next year, Nelson Piquet Jr made his prediction when speaking on the Pelas Pistas podcast.
Nelson Piquet Jr predicts Isack Hadjar will be Max Verstappen’s next Red Bull teammate
One of the standout rookies of the season has been Frenchman Isack Hadjar, who enjoyed his best finish to date at Racing Bulls during the Monaco GP.
Hadjar finished in sixth place ahead of Tsunoda, who didn’t even make it into the points, as the highest-placed Red Bull car behind Verstappen.
Hadjar’s performance has earned plaudits around the F1 paddock, with Damon Hill saying how impressed he was by the Frenchman having ‘surprised everyone’ this season.
Piquet believes he will be among the front runners to be Verstappen’s teammate for the 2026 season at Red Bull.
“It’s going well for him. I think he’s the next guy to join Max’s side there, which is a crazy thing,” said Piquet.
Isack Hadjar might be one of F1’s best rookies in 2025
Hadjar has been making the case of being one of the best rookies to take to the grid so far in 2025, given his performances have yielded consistent points for Racing Bulls.
Out of all four of the Red Bull drivers, he has scored over double the number of points of both Tsunoda and Lawson combined.
| Driver | Points |
| Max Verstappen | 136 |
| Isack Hadjar | 15 |
| Yuki Tsunoda | 10 |
| Liam Lawson | 1 |
Lawson is much more experienced than Hadjar, but could face pressure from Arvid Lindblad for his seat in 2026.
Lindblad has impressed in this year’s F2 season so far and only needs to bring in results during the European races to become a serious contender.
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