James Hinchcliffe says Red Bull have finally solved ‘second car blues’ with Isack Hadjar

Follow us on Google Discover

Red Bull have been notorious for having little to no performance from the second car in Formula 1 in recent years, but James Hinchcliffe thinks Isack Hadjar has ended the curse.

The Milton Keynes outfit are having a tough start to the 2026 season and the new regulations. Max Verstappen has voiced huge criticism of the changes as Red Bull struggle with the chassis.

Team principal Laurent Mekies is having trouble dealing with Red Bull’s identity crisis, with the team sitting sixth in the standings after three races. But their second driver Hadjar may give them some positivity.

Isack Hadjar thought he ‘was going to crash’ due to Red Bull’s issues during qualifying in Japan – How many Grand Prix wins do you now predict they can score in 2026?

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

The Frenchman qualified an outstanding P3 on his Red Bull debut in Melbourne, but a mechanical issue forced him out of the race. Hadjar is offering different feedback to Verstappen as he looks to find a feeling for the RB22.

He has scored four points thus far, having finished P8 in China, beating his teammate after he suffered an ERS problem. Hadjar then outqualified Verstappen at Suzuka, but fell back to P12 in the race.

James Hinchcliffe says Isack Hadjar has solved Red Bull’s ‘second car blues’

The likes of Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda have tried and failed to perform next to Verstappen at Red Bull. But Hinchcliffe believes that Hadjar is competing with him in the RB22.

He said via F1 Nation: “Yeah, they don’t have the second car blues anymore, do they? I mean, it really does seem like Hadjar’s done an incredible job. Well, yeah, they’ve got both car blues. But I mean, it’s in some ways, it is better because at least they are close.

“I think back to Mercedes quite a bit last year, right? When Mercedes was out on track, the car was really dialled in and the performance was there, Kimi was quite close to George, they could be very competitive.

“When you got to a track where they were really struggling, George would still hang on to those fourths and fifths where Kimi was lower half of the top 10 on a good day in those bad days.

“So you kind of tend to see that difference and especially experience when the car is not performing well. This car is not performing well, but Hadjar’s right there with Max, it’s kind of back and forth between the two of them.

“So from the team standpoint, I think they can take some solace on the fact that they put the right guy in that second car. Now they need to focus on getting the car back up to where it needs to be.”

READ MORE: Who is 2026 Red Bull F1 driver Isack Hadjar? Everything you need to know

Jolyon Palmer tells Isack Hadjar to ‘galvanise’ Red Bull while Max Verstappen loses motivation

Verstappen is considering quitting F1 in 2026, and Jolyon Palmer believes that this is an opportunity for Hadjar to ‘galvanise’ Red Bull.

“He’s just not enjoying anything about it, is he?” he said about the Dutchman. “He’s not enjoying racing the cars, not enjoying driving the cars. Like you say, the patience, the different tactics and management you need behind the wheel is not what he inherently wants to do.

“So the pace of the Red Bull is also not good. So if he does it well, he can qualify seventh or eighth. And he just wants to get in a car, drive it in the old school way. And this set of regs, you’re needing to adapt a lot.

Isack Hadjar blames Red Bull’s chassis for their poor start to 2026 – Are you surprised that their engine has not been the biggest issue?

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

“You’re needing to do things that drivers won’t be used to from behind the wheel. And small techniques make a big difference. And yeah, he’s not in the best headspace for it.

“He’s still doing a solid job when you look at it. He came through, finished behind Gasly in the Grand Prix, was coming through in China as well, and had the power unit overheating, the battery overheating.

“So he is still there or there about, but you just think at Red Bull, it’s a good time for Hadjar. I think he’s driving really well. I’m impressed with how he started.

“And then you’re looking across at the main guy, not enjoying that side of things. And you think this is a chance for me to just say, ‘Look, I’m good, I’m here. Come and galvanise behind me guys, if you want,’ and just try and keep that enthusiasm going.”