There will be three French people on the starting grid next year! Isack Hadjar will join Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly in making his Formula 1 debut in 2025. This was the last place on the grid to be filled.
After the separation between Sergio Perez and Red Bull and the promotion of Liam Lawson, Isack Hadjar takes the seat, becoming the 19th driver promoted to F1 from its junior program, which began in 2001. He follows in the footsteps of the quadruple champions of world Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel as well as eight-time race winner Daniel Ricciardo as well as his compatriot Pierre Gasly.
“I am very excited to take on my new role at VCARB,” said Hadjar. “It’s huge for me, my family and everyone who believed in me from the beginning.
“The journey from karting to single-seaters, to today in Formula 1, it’s the moment I’ve worked my whole life for – it’s the dream.
“I feel like I'm entering a whole new world, driving a much faster car and racing with the best drivers in the world.
“It will be a huge learning curve, but I am ready to work hard and do my best for the team.
“I look forward to working with and learning from Yuki. I always admired him, he went through the Red Bull junior program like me and we followed a similar path to F1. He is very experienced and it will be good to learn from him. »
Team principal Laurent Mekies said: “We are delighted to have Isack with us next year, bringing a new and fresh dynamic to the team alongside Yuki in 2025.
“His journey to Formula 1 has been nothing short of exceptional. He has made remarkable progress, with a series of impressive results in the junior single-seater categories.
“He has the talent and drive to compete at the highest level, and we are confident he will adapt quickly and make a significant impact.”
“I think Isack and Yuki will make a great team. Yuki brings invaluable experience to the team. He has shown incredible resilience and maturity, which will be crucial to the team as we strive to achieve all of our goals in 2025.”
Peter Bayer, CEO of Red Bull Racing, added: “First of all, we must congratulate Liam on his arrival at Red Bull Racing. As Formula 1's sister team and talent incubator, our strategic objective is to foster and nurture our drivers for this next step.
“With his and Isack’s arrival at VCARB, it is testament to our long-standing commitment to developing the best young drivers in motorsport, as well as the proof of concept of the Red Bull junior program.
“Having a younger driver supports our mission to appeal to a younger audience. So we look forward to taking new and existing fans on our journey with us. »
Who is Isack Hadjar
Born in 2004, Isack started in single-seaters in 2019 after many years of karting. After his victory in the Winfield Trophy, he participated in the French Formula 4 championship, finishing in third place in the 2020 season. In 2021, he joined Formula Regional Europe and scored his first victory on the streets of the principality of Monaco. A decisive blow, which put him on the radar of Helmut Marko, head of the young driver program at Red Bull.
Isaac Hadjar joins the Red Bull junior program in 2022. He joins F3 with the Hitech team, fights for the title but ultimately finishes fourth with three victories and five podiums. The following year, the Parisian became a Formula 2 driver, the antechamber of F1. The first season was difficult with a final 14th place in the championship. For the 2024 season, Isack Hadjar joins the Campos team. A choice which will pay off since he will be in the fight until the last race of the season in Abu Dhabi with Gabriel Bortoleto. Fairly recurring mechanical problems and a few small errors ultimately cost him the title. He still finished vice-champion with a record of four victories and eight podiums. Fast and very analytical, Isack already has a nickname: the “Little Fool”. Promising! The step will be enormous, because our young Frenchy will have to quickly adapt to the experienced Tsunoda and learn to better manage his emotions, which Helmut Marko did not fail to point out. Behavior, particularly in radio communication, will be just as scrutinized as its driving and times.
