Red Bull Racing have emerged as an early frontrunner in the 2026 season, looking strong in the opening pre-season test in Bahrain.
For years, that’s meant teams have had to put their focus squarely on Max Verstappen, and it’s easy to see why. He’s picked up four of the last five drivers’ championships.
Sergio Perez struggled toward the end of his time at Red Bull, and Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda didn’t perform much better last season.
Now, Isack Hadjar has taken on the challenge of trying to match Verstappen after a strong first year with Racing Bulls.
But Red Bull are still holding out hope that joining at the start of a new regulation cycle might help him close that gap.
That optimism took a hit when team officials got a look at just how complex these cars have become under the new rules. The challenges around energy management and active aerodynamics are significant hurdles for drivers still getting used to this era’s machinery.
But according to journalist Scott Mitchell-Malm, who watched Hadjar closely during testing in Bahrain, he seems to be picking up on one particular skillset – energy management – that Verstappen already excels at.
Isack Hadjar Making Progress With Verstappen’s Red Bull Technique
Speaking on The Race’s Patreon, Mitchell-Malm noted: “Hadjar had a bit more movement in the car as well when I was watching at [turns] 10 and 11 with him in it.
“Although I will say, what was quite encouraging from a Hadjar perspective is he didn’t seem to be able to deal with the instability from that downshift and the lower gears and the high revs, as well as Verstappen at the start of the test.
“But, by the end, and you could see it progressing through stints as well, it felt like he was getting a reasonable handle on how to adjust to that.
“I was quite encouraged that Hadjar’s having a reasonably good integration into the Red Bull. So, that might bode quite well for them as well.”
Isack Hadjar’s testing schedule for final Bahrain test
Even though F1 has tripled the number of pre-season test days this year, teams are already feeling the pressure to get their cars ready for the Australian Grand Prix.
De Telegraaf has reported that Hadjar will drive the RB22 on Wednesday and Friday morning, while Verstappen will take over on Thursday and Friday afternoon.
This schedule gives Hadjar valuable time to refine the high-rev technique required for efficient battery harvesting each lap.
Hadjar has spoken highly of Verstappen since joining him at Red Bull and is already setting his sights on a maiden Grand Prix win in 2026.
Verstappen hasn’t lost to a teammate since Perez took victory at the 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix. That stat highlights just how tough Hadjar’s task is, but his ambition is clear as he heads into his debut season with Red Bull.
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