Hadjar in no rush to join Red Bull: "I wouldn't feel ready"

“Hadjar was impressive, greeted Andrea Kimi Antonelli at a press conference in Montreal, when asked who was the best rookie of the season so far. He's the one I would choose."A choice that Christian Horner will not contradict, having already designated him as "the most impressive of the rookies, on Canal+ in Barcelona. So far, it has exceeded all our expectations.".

For several weeks, the Team Principal of Red Bull, just like Helmut Marko, are full of praise for their young protégé. “Hadjar is the big surprise of the season, the latter rejoiced. "No matter the circuit, he's immediately fast. He delivers superb performance everywhere. We knew he was fast, but the fact that he's so consistent and rides relatively easily is also a surprise for us.".

Since the promotion of Yuki tsunoda At Red Bull, the Frenchman scored three times more points than his short-lived teammate: 21 to 7. The Austrian team has written off the Constructors' standings, where Max Verstappen scored 137 of his team's 144 points. Enough to bring a third driver alongside him in 2025? The rumors are rife.

Being lined up in the number 2 Red Bull, a real promotion?

Does Red Bull even have an interest in promoting Isack Hadjar? When asked about this on the sidelines of the Canadian Grand Prix, the man himself tempered expectations on this matter. "It's a little scary, he amused himself. I wouldn't feel ready. I've only done nine races and it seems to be complicated when I look at Yuki (Tsunoda) or Liam (Lawson), who are very talented drivers.".

The Frenchman prefers to focus on his own progression within the Racing Bulls team. "For now, I'm enjoying this new job, he smiled. Everything is going very well, I'm happy to be part of this team. It's great.". While he had always shown his desire to jump into the Red Bull seat, the rookie put this desire into perspective for the first time in Montreal. "No, I'm not really ready, but I'll always be there if called."

Maybe he listened Alex Albon talks about the behavior of this Red Bull No. 2. "It's like turning your computer mouse sensitivity to maximum, popularized Verstappen's former teammate. It gets so sharp that it makes you a little tense. [Max] "It's going faster and faster, so you have to take more and more risks, then you make mistakes and lose confidence.". gasly, Albon, Lawson and now Tsunoda, so many young Red Bull drivers who have broken their teeth alongside Verstappen.

What if Hadjar was Verstappen's replacement?

Around Isack Hadjar, voices are multiplying to dissuade him from accepting a possible position at Red Bull. "If I were Hadjar now, if the team ever started talking about promotion, I would refuse, said Nico Rosberg, concerned about the Frenchman's progress curve. He's doing a great job with Racing Bulls, he's in a great position.".

But what if that spot weren't Tsunoda's, but Verstappen's instead. Threatened with a race suspension, the Dutchman would be replaced by Ayumu Iwasa on a temporary contract basis, according to Red Bull. On the other hand, if he decided to turn the page, wouldn't Hadjar be destined to become the next big name at the Milton Keynes team?

Of course, this scenario is not favored at the moment. Nevertheless, Max Verstappen has never hidden his desire not to linger in Formula 1, mentioning a possible retirement at the end of his contract at the end of 2028. Unless the Dutchman rushes things? "I think he'll win his fifth title this year and call it a day.", Calum Nicholas, his former mechanic, recently prophesied.

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