Isack Hadjar comments on potentially becoming Max Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull

Racing Bulls' driver Isack Hadjar has given his thoughts on the possibility of ever being called upon to take the second seat in the Red Bull Racing team alongside reigning World Champion Max Verstappen. The driver, who made his Formula 1 debut this year, explained that he was prepared to hop into the RB21, RBR's challenger for the 2025 season, if he was asked.

Hadjar also joked that even if he wasn't ready, he still wouldn't have said no. So far, the rookie has scored a DNF and a points finish over the course of three weekends.

The Racing Bulls driver was initially teammates with Yuki Tsunoda until he moved up to the Red Bull team to take the place of Liam Lawson. With the Austrian outfit having already shown that they're willing to make substitutes at their discretion by promoting a driver from their sister team, the question came up to the French driver if he would be up to take the spot next to Max Verstappen if the opportunity arose. He replied, via F1:

“Of course, it’s a huge challenge and I’m not really planning on it at the moment. I’m just trying to do my best with what I have. But if I get the call, of course, I would say I’m ready. Even if I’m not, I would say I’m ready!”

Helmut Marko, consultant to the Red Bull team and the person who identified Verstappen's talent when he was just 16 years old, spoke highly of the French driver's performance since he started racing for the junior F1 team.

“I was impressed since the first time he jumped in the car,” Marko said. “His speed surprised all of us, but also the coolness which he showed," Marko said, via F1.

In the opening race of the season in Australia, Isack Hadjar unfortunately didn't finish the race after he crashed in the formation lap. However, last weekend at Suzuka Circuit, the rookie crossed the finish line to take P8, becoming the only non-Verstappen Red Bull-affiliated driver to score points in the Japanese Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen and new teammate Yuki Tsunoda play a game of padel

The Red Bull Racing duo of Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda spent some time ahead of this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix playing padel together. The four-time World Champion shared a photo featuring him and his new teammate on the court on Instagram.

"🎾 Bahrain sessions"

Helmut Marko has confirmed that Yuki Tsunoda will have the remainder of the season to prove himself with the Red Bull team, effectively closing the door to any chance of Max Verstappen receiving a new teammate this year.

The Bahrain Grand Prix will take place this weekend, between April 11 and 13, at Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir.