Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies says Isack Hadjar needs more time to recover from his wrist injury and is unlikely to return to Formula 1 at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Hadjar injured his wrist in training during the summer break, with the setback ruling him out of the Zandvoort and Monza F1 weekends. He has been replaced by Liam Lawson at Red Bull, with Yuki Tsunoda consequently standing in at Racing Bulls.
Hadjar has sought advice from Marc Marquez, as the seven-time MotoGP champion has infamously suffered from several long-lasting injuries in the past six years, sometimes aggravated by Marquez returning to action prematurely.
So the 21-year-old’s ethos has been not to rush things, which Red Bull has been fully onboard with.
“Look, Isack is okay,” Mekies told French broadcaster Canal+ during FP1. “He can’t drive now so, obviously, I’m not going to tell you he’s happy – because he’s not.
“But the absolute priority is his recovery. We have no reason to take risks with it. His season so far has been fantastic, he’s very young, he improves every time he drives the car, so it’s important for him to return when he’s 100%.
“So we’ll take whatever time is required, trust his feeling and the doctors’ guidance, and give him the time he needs. We’ll soon laugh about this, I’m sure.”
As to whether Hadjar will make it back on track at Madrid’s inaugural Madring race next weekend, Mekies pessimistically pondered: “Madrid is a few days from now, so that’s tricky. We’ll reevaluate his situation, but targeting Madrid probably is tricky.
“But we’re taking things one race at a time and we’re looking at it together in a more rational way. Again, the priority, what will influence our decision, is being sure he returns at 100% and with zero risks for his future.”
Albeit currently sidelined, Hadjar saw his 2026 points tally increase today, courtesy of the International Court of Appeal’s ruling on the Monaco Grand Prix. Pierre Gasly’s speeding penalties have been reinstated, meaning Hadjar has recovered his initial podium finish.
Additional reporting by Fabien Gaillard
