the essential
Racing Bulls formalized the signing of the Frenchman this Friday, December 20. The 20-year-old young driver will wear the colors of the Italian team in 2025.
A third Frenchman arrives in Formula 1! Isack Hadjar (20 years old) will discover the premier category of motorsport next spring after being hired by the Racing Bulls team, which announced the news this Friday in a press release. The Parisian, runner-up in Formula 2 this season despite numerous mechanical problems, managed to persuade the Italian team, Red Bull’s little sister, to trust him.
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“It’s huge for me, for my family and for everyone who believed in me from the start,” rejoiced the young talent, quoted in the press release from his new team. This is the moment I have worked for all my life, it’s a dream.” Isack Hadjar will thus become the 72nd French driver to race in Formula 1. He will be third on the current grid alongside Esteban Ocon (Haas) and Pierre Gasly (Alpine).
“Little Prost”
Nicknamed “little Prost” by Red Bull’s influential Austrian advisor Helmut Marko, who is also responsible for the young driver sector, the Habs have shown great things this season. He notably won four races and achieved eight podiums in Formula 2.
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“In fact I analyze a lot when I ride, I use my head. It’s really my universe, it’s my domain and I master it so I allow myself to think about things that don’t disturb me”, had explained Hadjar to AFP in early December. A description which brings him closer to Alain Prost, nicknamed “The Professor” because of his intellectual approach to racing. But there is still a long way to go to follow in the footsteps of the four-time French Formula 1 world champion.
A passion to channel
Especially since Hadjar will have to learn to channel his energy but above all his frustration, which he sometimes lets appear on the radio. Even if he speaks louder than he gets angry, his interventions are sometimes considered as verbal outbursts which will be less easily tolerated in F1, where he will be much more exposed than in F2.
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“His parents and his sister are very intelligent, so he too should use his head a little more sometimes, it’s one of his weak points. He needs to be more patient and less impulsive. He has a lot of temperament, is too capricious at times, Helmut Marko told AFP in early December.
“Promising and fast”
“But he has made a lot of progress in this area. He is one of our most promising and fastest young drivers. And he also knows how to manage his tires very well, which is very important today. He lost more than 80 points this season due to mechanical problems, but he hung on until the last race, which proves his mental strength,” added the Austrian veteran.
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When driving the Red Bull cars during free practice periods, Isack Hadjar made a strong impression by driving faster than his future teammate Yuki Tsunoda. The rooki now hopes to confirm that he is capable of meeting F1’s expectations. But he has no doubt about that.
“I proved what I had to prove in F2. I have the level to drive in F1. But I don’t want to go there to make up the numbers. I don’t want to be there to be there and vegetate, that’s not the case. “I want to be there to fight, to win,” he told AFP in early December. The tone is set.
