F1 News: Red Bull consider major driver decision with change likely for Italian Grand Prix

Red Bull

Red Bull consider major driver decision with change likely

A fascinating subplot for this week!

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Tuesday 1 September 2026 15:27

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It's Italian Grand Prix week, and still nobody is quite sure who'll be driving the second Red Bull car alongside Max Verstappen from Friday onwards.

Last time out at Zandvoort, that was Liam Lawson - filling in for Isack Hadjar after the Frenchman suffered a fractured wrist while training over the summer break.

The team sounded optimistic at the time that Hadjar would recover and be ready to go in time for this weekend's trip to Monza, but a final decision is not expected to be made until Wednesday, to give as much time as possible for Hadjar's recovery.

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If Hadjar is declared unfit and Lawson is once again called up for Red Bull duties, he'll be replaced at Racing Bulls by Yuki Tsunoda for the second time in as many races, with the Japanese driver still hopeful that he can convince a team to pick him up full-time for the 2027 season.

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Red Bull cagey on Isack Hadjar injury return

Speaking about Hadjar's injury at the Dutch Grand Prix, team principal Laurent Mekies said: "He will be here later. but he won't be racing. He had a very good first half of the season. But we don't want to take any risks, so he's taking a break from this race."

Pushed on whether the Dutch Grand Prix would be the only race Hadjar misses, he added: "It's too early to talk about that. But our goal is for him to be back in the cockpit at the next race in Monza."

Injury sidelined Hadjar at the Dutch Grand Prix.

Hadjar contract extension expected 'soon'

While the injury is a dent in Hadjar's first season driving for Red Bull's senior team, the youngster has impressed more than any team-mate of Verstappen since Sergio Perez's heyday.

Unlike Lawson and Tsunoda, who were given two races and 22 races respectively before being shunted out of the seat, the Frenchman seems to have done enough to pass his one-season job interview.

AMuS report that a contract extension for 2027 should be in place 'soon', with Arvid Lindblad also having done enough for Racing Bulls that he'll get a second season to continue his development.

In theory, that leaves Lawson - already in his fourth season, although only just second driving every race - as the odd man out with Nikola Tsolov pushing for an F1 seat. However, the Kiwi's performances (scoring more than double Lindblad's points and sitting as the lead non-Big 4 team driver) may have earned him another season, if not Hadjar's Red Bull seat.

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F1 Red Bull Yuki Tsunoda Liam Lawson Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls