Red Bull F1 star crashes heavily to bring halt to United States Grand Prix qualifying

Verstappen and Hadjar mid-discussion on a paddock walk — Photo: © IMAGO

United States Grand Prix

Red Bull F1 star crashes heavily to bring halt to US GP qualifying

US GP qualifying had barely got underway before the first red flag

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Saturday 18 October 2025 23:15 Updated: 23:29

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Red Bull F1 hopeful Isack Hadjar has brought an abrupt halt to qualifying at this weekend's United States Grand Prix after a heavy crash early on in the session.

Q1 in Saturday's outing was red-flagged before it had barely begun after Hadjar, who currently drives for Red Bull's junior team Racing Bulls, went hurtling into the barriers at Turn 6.

Sky F1's commentators immediately remarked how heavy the crash must have been for the 21-year-old, who could be seen hitting his steering wheel in frustration in the cockpit.

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“That means he’s hit the wall at over 25g, 25 times the force of gravity,” Martin Brundle explained, as David Croft added: “That’s quite a hefty one.”

Brundle continued: "He'll know about it but I feel sorry for him there because it just broke lose.

"He was on the right part of the track and it started to slide, and he was carrying so much speed. I feel sorry for the lad there. He was pushing on, there was nothing he could do."

The red flag was waved before anyone had completed a flying lap, meaning drivers who had used their tyres prior to Hadjar's crash had essentially been left with nothing to show for it.

The session eventually resumed at 4:14pm local time (CDT) after the F1 machinery had been recovered and Hadjar had headed back to the Racing Bulls garage.

Is Hadjar ready to be Verstappen's team-mate?

The crash during qualifying at COTA means Hadjar will have a lot of work to make up for in Sunday's race, a scenario which is less than ideal considering he currently finds himself in a rolling audition of sorts to be handed a promotion for 2026.

With just five grands prix and two sprint races remaining on the calendar following the 19th round in Austin, Hadjar is already being tipped as the rookie of the year, a factor which could impact Red Bull's driver lineup for next season.

Since the first round of the 2025 campaign back in March, Verstappen has been handed two different team-mates, with Liam Lawson demoted back to Racing Bulls after just two rounds and Yuki Tsunoda heavily criticised throughout the season.

Hadjar on the other hand has shone at the junior team, picking up his F1 podium debut in only his 15th race in the pinnacle of motorsport.

As the rookie stood just one place below Verstappen on the podium in Zandvoort, it cannot be denied that Helmut Marko was likely already eyeing up the French-Algerian racer for a potential move.

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