Formula 1 News: Hadjar closes on Red Bull seat as Marko hails ‘little Prost’ (Update)

(GMM) Isack Hadjar looks increasingly destined to line up alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2026.

The 20-year-old French rookie stunned with his Zandvoort podium in the junior Racing Bulls car, becoming the nation’s youngest-ever driver on a Formula 1 rostrum – while Yuki Tsunoda continues to struggle at the senior team.

Dr Helmut Marko, long effusive in his praise of Hadjar, said the result was no surprise.

“Not really surprising,” he told Osterreich newspaper, “if you’ve followed Hadjar’s path into Formula 1 and what he’s made of it.”

Marko then turned on his interviewer for previously praising 19-year-old Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli.

“You parroted Toto Wolff, who said what a great driver Kimi Antonelli is,” Marko snapped.

When the journalist defended Antonelli’s stronger junior record and preparation, Marko replied, “Sure, but with 10,000 km of practice in a two-year-old car, with which Mercedes let him practice day and night. Before this season, Hadjar had maybe 500km in a Formula 1 car.”

Hadjar’s early 2025 season was far less glorious, including crashing on the formation laps in Melbourne and breaking down in tears.

“He laid it on a bit too thick,” Marko recalled. “At the very least he could have taken off his helmet so everyone would have seen that he wasn’t really crying.

“It’s true – those times weren’t always easy, but the speed was always there, and in the end he put it all together perfectly.”

So why wasn’t Hadjar – instead of Tsunoda – given the Red Bull seat earlier in the year when Liam Lawson faltered after just two races?

“Because for that, he needs a certain amount of routine,” said Marko. “In a top team the pressure is much greater, as you can also see at Mercedes.”

Marko stopped short of confirming Hadjar’s definite Red Bull promotion, but his smile told its own story. “We’ll see,” he said.

“We have until October to make that decision.”

Still, the Austrian advisor admits Hadjar’s off-track character makes him an ideal candidate. “He’s a funny fellow. And highly intelligent – his mother is deputy HR director at a company with 4,000 employees, his father is a nuclear physicist.”

Marko also suggested a reunion with team principal Laurent Mekies, Hadjar’s former boss at Racing Bulls, will be ideal.

“Mekies is a superb engineer, which with the complexity of Formula 1 today is a huge advantage,” said Marko. “He’s also good with people – the atmosphere is completely different from before.”

And is Max Verstappen himself also happier in this new post-Christian Horner era?

“It’s going very well,” said a relieved Marko. “He has observed everything over the past weeks and is convinced it’s heading in the right direction.”

(GMM) All signs are pointing to Isack Hadjar (pictured)joining Max Verstappen at Red Bull in 2026.

Related Article: F1 News: Hadjar shines as Red Bull teammate debate intensifies

New team boss Laurent Mekies revealed at Zandvoort that Verstappen himself personally shut down speculation about his own future the moment they met as driver and new boss.

“Max and I never once talked about his future,” he told Bild. “We didn’t need to.

“He came to me on my first day of work and said, ‘Forget everything you’ve read. I will stay with Red Bull, and I’m looking forward to the time ahead of us together’.”

The real intrigue is Verstappen’s next teammate.

Sergio Perez is long gone, Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson have struggled in 2025, but 20-year-old Hadjar has suddenly emerged as the brightest star in the Red Bull system.

The Frenchman stunned with a podium at Zandvoort in his Racing Bulls, becoming the youngest Frenchman ever on an F1 rostrum. “Alain Prost just wrote to me and said it’s amazing to break such records,” Hadjar smiled.

Dr Helmut Marko, Red Bull motorsport director, can’t hide his admiration.

“We chose Hadjar because we knew he had something special. I call him little Prost, the new Prost,” he said. “People laughed when I said it, but now he is getting results.

“When he comes to a new track, three laps are enough. Nothing affects him.”

Hadjar, for his part, is making sure to thank the man who signed him at junior level. “It was Helmut who gave me this shot,” he said. “He gave me a path, a trajectory, and I’m actually following it pretty well right now.”

Mekies, who was Hadjar’s Racing Bulls boss earlier this season, also admits the youngster deserves a senior seat. “He’s making progress one after the other, and the trend is pointing in the right direction,” he told Sky Italia.

When asked if Mekies deserves a top seat, he answered simply: “Yes.”

Even Verstappen is playing along with the rumours. Asked how well they might work together, the Dutchman quipped: “Terrible.”

Hadjar, also laughing, added: “I don’t want to be next to Max. I don’t like him. That’s it.”

But while Marko also smiled throughout his Dutch GP interviews, he insists no final call has been made. “We will decide later,” he said. “His progress is impressive, but it all has to do with performance.”

A decision is expected “around” the Mexican GP, with Arvid Lindblad tipped as Racing Bulls’ replacement if Hadjar moves up. “We’re working on that too,” said Marko, 82.

As for Tsunoda, his chances look slim. “He needs to get closer to Max and consistently maintain that level,” Marko told ORF. “That’s why we’ve pushed back the decision date. We’re now looking at the upcoming races.”

Hadjar, though, says he’s ready now. “I can drive everything except a MotoGP,” he laughed to Sky Italia. “I’m ready for whatever happens.”