Introducing F1’s new rookies: Isack Hadjar, starting with the championship’s second hardest job

In the second instalment of a new mini-series where Motorsport.com is delving into the budding Formula 1 careers of the six 2025 rookies, today we’re introducing new Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar.

The 20-year-old was born in Paris and has French and Algerian heritage – bringing a new link for F1 to north Africa. Of the two African countries with major race-hosting history, the Moroccan Grand Prix back in 1958 is now nearly 70 years ago and firmly in the world championship’s infancy.

But, back in the here and now, Hadjar – who is managed by his mother and his father is a quantum physicist – was asked about his Algerian heritage during F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain.

“I represent them now, I guess,” he said. “Obviously, I race under the French flag. But, yeah, it’s a first in Formula 1. And I’m proud of that. I’ll just [try to] do them proud. That’s it.”

Hadjar arrives in F1 after finishing as runner-up in the 2024 Formula 2 championship and has been Red Bull-backed since 2022. Last year’s F2 campaign was his second at the top of the grand prix support bill, after he’d been fourth in Formula 3 in 2022.

That same year he completed a dual programme with the Formula Regional Asian championship – where he finished third – after coming fifth in the European series in 2021. His single-seater career started with two seasons in French Formula 4, with a best finish of third in 2020.

When asked by Motorsport.com how he’d choose to introduce himself to F1 fans at the recent F175 Live event in London, Hadjar replied: “I’m someone who fought his way to F1 the hard way and I’m really excited about this challenge.

“I’m really hungry and I’ll just give my absolute maximum and try and be spectacular on track, that’s it.”

Yuki Tsunoda, RB F1 Team, Isack Hadjar, RB F1 Team

Photo by: Getty Images

That approach was certainly on display during the first day of F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain last month, with Hadjar pirouetting balletically through a 360-degree spin exiting the Sakhir track’s Turn 4 early on the opening afternoon.

But that has more to do with the initial debut of the VCARB 02 – where its drivers’ early grapples with balance were matched in being as bad as its fresh livery is utterly excellent.

Hajar’s driving style involves using the brakes aggressively on corner entry, which might be an early alarm bell given Lewis Hamilton – who previously excelled with such an approach – has struggled considerably on this front with the new ground-effect generation of cars. They just don’t like being pushed so much and front locking can become unpredictable as the downforce sheds when the speed range changes suddenly on turn-in.

Off-track, Hadjar made a lower-key impact at testing. Rookie nerves are entirely natural, but, as with his comment above, he seemed to be combatting them with a delightful, determined streak. Take for instance how he insisted on the test’s final day that he “would say I got up to speed fairly quickly”.

“Just able to push the limit of the car quite well, got used to F1 [speeds],” he added. “But now the more difficult bit is to extract the most out of it when it matters. Especially on short runs, I feel like there’s still some work to do. It’s hard to get the tyres in the right window.”

This has all made for a captivating entrance, but Hadjar’s reputation is immediately entangled with an intangible element for which the F1 sphere is very guilty of often adding, even to young drivers.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Isack Hadjar, RB F1 Team

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

This is how narratives can become very hard to shift, especially if positive results aren’t forthcoming to knock the championship’s hive mind into a different place.

At this stage ahead of the Melbourne opener, it’s only fair, and logical, to assume Hadjar will be able to reach these – if the VCARB 02 shows better once testing fuel loads are removed and engine modes turned up to maximum. If it doesn’t, at least he can learn away from the intense focus that comes with fighting for the higher places.

For Hadjar, the already-established narratives centre on two things: how he too often delivered ear-splitting team radio messages in the lower formula and that his F2 title campaign fell apart from a strong position midway through 2024.

Surrounding all this is how his Silverstone FP1 appearance for Red Bull was underwhelming to the point it left team insiders with an apparent reluctance to promote him.

That’s until circumstances changed considerably for Sergio Perez and Franco Colapinto – in opening up a spot at Red Bull’s main team and how its management considered candidates for what is now Hadjar’s seat that included looking outside Red Bull’s junior fold.

Hadjar insists the radio flapping matters little, but it is partly for a similar infraction that Red Bull has become so entrenched in its position on his now team-mate, Yuki Tsunoda.

But all of Hadjar’s 2024 F2 wins coming in feature races do bolster his standings considerably, given they didn’t come from a reversed grid.

Isack Hadjar, Campos Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

His job now is also two-fold as his rookie racing bow approaches: to shut out the speculation and succeed with Racing Bulls, while avoiding the fate of its most recent unexpected driver hire. This was Nyck de Vries, who lasted just 10 races in 2023.

Daniel Ricciardo’s re-signing and ejection last year is also a timely reminder of just how brutal the Red Bull junior scheme can be, with the energy drinks giant having another up-and-comer already rising in Arvid Lindblad. Red Bull team boss Christian Horner and its key motorsport advisor, Helmut Marko, are known to rate Lindblad highly.

Inevitably, this will pile pressure on Hadjar as Marko is incapable of avoiding this and actually prefers drivers who thrive with it.

But, if being Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team-mate is considered the hardest job in F1 – currently the fate of another Red Bull junior in Liam Lawson, who this series will consider next – then in trying to succeed amongst all that pressure at Racing Bulls, Hadjar has surely stepped straight into the championship’s second most challenging task in 2025.