Red Bull ready to confirm F1 driver for 2027

Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar walking into the Bahrain paddock during pre season testing — Photo: © IMAGO

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Red Bull ready to confirm F1 driver for 2027

Red Bull's team principal has made his decision

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Wednesday 29 July 2026 09:43

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Red Bull F1 team look set to announce the first step in their decision to lock in their driver lineup for 2027 following last weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix.

The race at the Hungaroring marked the 11th round of the championship and the final race before the 2026 summer shutdown, and star driver Max Verstappen endured a mixed weekend before ending on a high with a podium.

Verstappen now heads into the three-week break from the calendar with a lot to discuss, both with his own management and with Red Bull GmbH.

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Though the Dutchman did manage to move up a place in the standings after finishing P2 in Hungary, he was still four places below the top two in the championship, meaning he is now free to activate his exit clause at anytime between now and October.

The 28-year-old is yet to confirm his position at Red Bull for 2027, though it must be said that a move elsewhere on the grid looks increasingly unlikely as the window of opportunity at McLaren and Mercedes seems to have closed.

His team-mate Isack Hadjar however continued a run of respectable results with a sixth-place finish last time out, and the 21-year-old can now relax over the summer, safe in the knowledge that his boss has all but confirmed his seat for next season.

Red Bull set to announce 'logical' F1 contract decision

In quotes reported by Dutch publication De Telegraaf, Red Bull F1 team principal Laurent Mekies made it clear after the race in Hungary that he is in no rush to demote Hadjar back down to the junior team or terminate his full-time contract.

"It is good news that we have a strong second driver for the first time in quite a long time," said Mekies, who made the difficult decision to drop Yuki Tsunoda in favour of Hadjar at the end of last season.

Assessing Hadjar's performance in the highly stressful second Red Bull seat so far, Mekies continued: "That was also one of our goals prior to this season. Isack is performing solidly and has learned a lot from the team and from Max.

"It is good news, also for Max, that our two cars are a bit closer together.

"We haven't discussed the future yet, but everyone can see that Isack is doing an excellent job. So we will make a logical decision."

An official contract extension announcement for Hadjar is expected off the back of Mekies' comments, with the 21-year-old said to be currently operating on an agreement which is reviewed annually.