Red Bull told what they must do ‘behind the scenes’ before replacing Yuki Tsunoda with Isack Hadjar

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Jamie Chadwick believes there is now an “inevitability” about Racing Bulls gem Isack Hadjar replacing Yuki Tsunoda in Red Bull’s main driver line-up in the 2026 F1 season.

But while Hadjar has “surprised” everyone during his first 16 rounds as a Formula 1 driver in 2025, Chadwick feels there are “private” steps that Red Bull must take before the 20-year-old joins. It would cap a rapid rise for a driver who was not due to be at Racing Bulls in 2025.

Red Bull only promoted Hadjar from Formula 2 for the 2025 F1 season with their junior crew after Liam Lawson initially graduated from Racing Bulls to replace Sergio Perez. Now, Hadjar is expected to race for Red Bull in 2026 as Tsunoda has struggled since he replaced Lawson.

Tsunoda goes into this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku after scoring points once in the last nine rounds. The 25-year-old has also only scored points in four of his 14 rounds as a Red Bull driver and is also yet to finish a Grand Prix higher than P9 since replacing Lawson.

Jamie Chadwick thinks Red Bull ‘have to’ replace Yuki Tsunoda with Isack Hadjar in 2026

Sources have told F1 Oversteer that Laurent Mekies is set to replace Tsunoda with Hadjar for Red Bull’s 2026 driver line-up. Red Bull’s team principal is a huge fan of the Frenchman after working together at Racing Bulls earlier this year, before Mekies succeeded Christian Horner.

READ MORE: Who is Racing Bulls 2025 F1 driver Isack Hadjar? Everything you need to know

But before Hadjar becomes Max Verstappen’s latest teammate, Chadwick believes Red Bull must run the Parisian in a private test in their car. Tsunoda is the latest driver to struggle in the second Red Bull, so the Milton Keynes squad need to find out how Hadjar will perform.

Chadwick said on Sky Sports F1 (19/09, 09:18): “I think they have to because you’ve got this young driver performing at such a high level. He surprised all of us. I think everyone’s so happy to see him performing so well. They’re the main team.

“They have to prioritise the main team. They have to put the best drivers they think in that team. So, I think there’s an inevitability [about Hadjar replacing Tsunoda].

“But, at the same time, I think behind the scenes, they have to do all the due diligence, at least privately, get him in that Red Bull car, do the test [and] see where he’s at.

“There is a discrepancy between performance in the Racing Bulls and performance in the Red Bull, and no one seems to understand that.

“Or, put Max in the Racing Bulls in a private test and see why that is. But they need to understand that themselves fully to work out why it’s going wrong in that second seat.”

Red Bull and Max Verstappen have no interest in testing with Racing Bulls’ 2025 F1 car

No driver has truly been able to consistently perform close to the same levels as Verstappen can produce at Red Bull since Daniel Ricciardo left the team after the 2018 F1 season. Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Perez, Lawson and Tsunoda have seen the seat act as a poisoned chalice.

The Red Bull RB21 has been a particularly tricky machine for Tsunoda to master owing to its narrow operating window compared to the Racing Bulls VCARB 02. But Red Bull will not test Verstappen in Racing Bulls’ 2025 car, which is widely regarded as being a kinder car to drive.

While Chadwick believes it could help Red Bull gauge whether Hadjar is ready for their main team next year, Verstappen also has no interest in testing with Racing Bulls’ car. Next season also sees the start of F1’s 2026 regulations era, which will see a very different car from 2025.

“No, not really no,” Verstappen said, via quotes by RacingNews365 in September, about the possibility of the Red Bull driver testing in Racing Bulls’ car. “I just need to focus on my own driving and try to understand where we can do better.”