Isack Hadjar will make his Formula 1 debut in 2025 as Yuki Tsunoda’s new team mate at Racing Bulls, the team which competed as RB this year.
He will move into the seat vacated by Liam Lawson following his promotion to Red Bull alongside Max Verstappen.Hadjar said he was “very excited” by the announcement. “This is huge for myself, my family and all the people who have believed in me from the beginning,” he said.
“The journey from karting through the ranks in single-seaters, to now being in Formula 1 is the moment I’ve been working towards my whole life, it is the dream. I feel like I’m stepping into a whole new universe, driving a much faster car and racing with the best drivers in the world. It’ll be a huge learning curve, but I’m ready to work hard and do the best I can for the team.”
He has been a member of Red Bull’s junior programme since 2022, when he finished fourth in Formula 3 with Hitech. He graduated to F2 the following year.
Hadjar’s rise to F1, five years after he moved into car racing, “has been nothing short of outstanding” said team principal Laurent Mekies.
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“He has shown remarkable growth, with a series of impressive results in the junior single-seater ranks. He has the talent and drive necessary to compete at the highest level, and we have every confidence that he will adapt quickly and make a significant impact.
“I believe Isack and Yuki will make a great team. Yuki brings invaluable experience to the team, he’s shown incredible resilience and maturity, which will be crucial for the team as we strive to hit all our aims and objectives in 2025.”
Although Hadjar has not officially selected his career number yet, he is understood to favour using number six.
Hadjar’s promotion means the F1 grid for 2025 is complete. He is one of six drivers who will start their first full seasons in F1 next year, along with Lawson at Red Bull, Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes, Jack Doohan at Alpine, Gabriel Bortoleto at Sauber and Oliver Bearman at Haas.
View the current list of 2025 F1 drivers and teams
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MichaelN
20th December 2024, 10:13
Good for him, great to see so many new drivers in F1 next season.
It will be interesting to see how Tsunoda handles his rejection. Will he be defeated, or super charged to prove he belongs on the grid in 2026? The latter might not be an ideal teammate for a rookie to have.
Jere (@jerejj)
20th December 2024, 10:42
Today as expected after Wednesday & yesterday.
Like with all the previously confirmed rookies, I’m looking forward to seeing how he’ll perform in F1.
Simon
20th December 2024, 20:11
“as expected”
Well of course it is in occy-world
oweng (@oweng)
20th December 2024, 10:52
I’m really looking forward to next season with the grid as it is.
6 new/nearly new young drivers including in 2 of the top 4 teams. A frontline driver moving from one big team to another. A new teammate test for Verstappen. Hopefully a continuation of the closeness at the front of the field.
Can’t wait!
Red Andy (@red-andy)
20th December 2024, 11:12
Last season felt very static with no driver moves at all, but Hamilton’s early move to Ferrari has really shaken things up for this season. Feels like a lot of teams are wanting to give their young drivers experience before the new regulations come in for 2026, too.
Sumedh
20th December 2024, 11:24
Yep. I think teams don’t want to try debutants in 2026. Hence, you either risk keeping the young drivers on the sidelines till 2027 or you fast track them now.
I think it is good we get the new crop now.
On the downside, the winner of F2 championship in 2025 (last year before rule change), may find it difficult to get a seat. Similar to how Piastri didn’t get a seat for 2022 and Gasly had to wait until almost end of 2017 to get the Toro Rosso seat.
Jere (@jerejj)
20th December 2024, 12:28
Sumedh The technical regulation changes for 2017 weren’t a factor in Gasly not receiving a full-time driver for the entire season as he deserved after winning the GP2 championship (even if not dominantly) & Kvyat being subpar for most of 2016 after the demotion.
It was solely about his average performance level in the 2016 GP2 campaign despite eventually winning the championship, which Red Bull was unhappy about.
Even the 2022 season had a full-time rookie in Zhou despite those changes being F1’s biggest ever.
MacLeod (@macleod)
20th December 2024, 13:27
It’s too much F2 drivers coming over for coming year. So all those in F2/F3 will know there will be maybe 1 or 2 spots for them IF those 6 fail this year.
So it sucks to be in F2 or lower next year as you know the way up is blocked (with exception if someone fails next year.
Ambrogio Isgro
20th December 2024, 15:46
Well, maybe some of the newcomer fails or some of the old ones is consistently outscored by the teammate, Who know?
Also Cadillac is coming, so sooner there will two more seats available.
The main problems is that apart of the 20 drivers on the grid there are also other ones outsider ready to take the first free seat, like Franco Colapinto.
Jere (@jerejj)
20th December 2024, 12:25
@oweng I agree. The 2025 full-time grid looks interesting, with a good mix of old-school & younger generations.
David BR (@david-br)
20th December 2024, 13:16
@oweng I was going to say the same. I’m especially keen on seeing Antonelli in the Mercedes vs Russell, but there’s a lot of other rookie or almost-rookie plots and subplots too. I’m automatically assuming Lawson’s arrival at Red Bull is heavily conditioned on playing for Team Max, but who knows, he may rebel.
Mog
21st December 2024, 6:48
Perez rebelled, or tried to in 2022. Look how that ended up
kuvemar
20th December 2024, 11:22
Wow, Red Bull are working really hard to create the most unlikable team in history. Maybe replace Yuki next year with Ferruci and you’re there.
Coventry Climax
20th December 2024, 11:46
RB is a team you can’t possibly like anyway, as they don’t run my favourite driver.
They are the worst team in history anyway, always employ the worst drivers, have the worst personnel, and generally just should not even be in F1 at all.
In fact, any competition for my favourite team and driver should be denied access to F1, as they have no reason or right to being there in the first place.
There, happy now?
Edvaldo
20th December 2024, 12:28
Are you having a hard day, man?
So sour..
Coventry Climax
20th December 2024, 13:45
That for me Evaldo?
If so, you entirely missed my sarcasm replying to the actual and original sourpuss here, named kuvemar.
SteveP
20th December 2024, 19:12
It made me smile, when Edvaldo missed it.
Then I paused and thought about the English penchant for irony and sarcasm, and the tendency of other nations to miss the subtle twists.
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
20th December 2024, 14:04
Also he has a big nose and spots …. Hadjar I mean, not kuvemar.
SteveP
20th December 2024, 19:14
2026 regulations test – active aero
Sergey Martyn
21st December 2024, 10:25
He will use a helmet with an extended front side.
Moi
23rd December 2024, 12:08
Is that actually regulated? Could you use a ‘beaky’ helmet?
tielemst
20th December 2024, 15:08
This. And I think I heard someone say RB said mean stuff about my mother and Hadjar didn’t do anything to stop it.
An Sionnach
20th December 2024, 15:46
He’s a bad one too, then. All Red Bull staff should be held to a standard that nobody else need worry about. Just because.
sam
20th December 2024, 17:38
Internet Gold
BenjaminS (@benihana)
20th December 2024, 11:38
Unless Red Bulls address their fundamental flaw to the RB20 Liam will struggle alongside a Max capable of reigning in a troubled car. On the Racing Bulls side I find it interesting that they paired two of the most fiery radio talkers together and hope one or the other does not pick up bad habits.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
20th December 2024, 11:38
<blockquotehe’s shown incredible resilience and maturity
Don’t get me wrong, I think Yuki is great and I love that he swears his heart out of his sleeve. But ‘mature’ isn’t the first adjective that springs to mind. In fact, I can’t really think of many F1 drivers over the years that I would apply that to. We could do away with the cars and just have a ball pit and say Senna is the greatest because he got upset the most and pinched Gilles when the grown ups weren’t looking.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
20th December 2024, 11:39
Urgh, learning to use the ‘quotes‘
Coventry Climax
20th December 2024, 11:54
Yeah, it’s hard for dogs, as they have no index finger. ;-)
I use a picture of one of my dogs as avatar on an aviation site, and yes, I get comments like ‘dogs don’t generally make decent pilots’ ..
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
20th December 2024, 12:00
Ha! There’s a couple of others here who use what I presume are their dogs. I would like it if we all used dog avatars, in the hope that, a bit like Stonehenge, historians find this site achieved somewhere and conclude that dogs were very into F1 around this period. And didn’t make decent pilots.
Shimks (@shimks)
20th December 2024, 12:03
…unless you find yourself in a dogfight.
David BR (@david-br)
20th December 2024, 13:18
@bernasaurus Hmm, there may also be some dogs posting here under the avatars of their human house-sitters.
Monosodico (@monosodico)
20th December 2024, 15:30
hmmmm thinking about changing my profile pic
Shimks (@shimks)
20th December 2024, 12:06
I was waiting for this piece of news, and I am so chuffed! I love Hadjar, and I think he’s eventually going to be a brilliant F1 driver, and also a fantastic addition to the grid because of his addictive personality. I’m so happy!
pcxmac (@pcxmac)
20th December 2024, 20:29
^^^ Chuffed is pretty much it. After the disaster that was the end of this year’s championship with Campos, its great to see hes still got a chance to show up. Now if F1 would just replace the sprint race, with an only rookies cup, in F1 cars, that would be amazing and do wonders I think for showcasing what is, and what could be. And all the guys in F2, that are doing the business (top 5) automatically get promoted / drafted, Out of 10 that have to be brought in every year, so that the most anyone can do is 2 years. But still get the chance to drive the F1 cars, get some lime light, and showcase their pace.
Coventy Climax
20th December 2024, 12:14
Impossible to assess now, but it would be interesting to see if the average level of the drivers on the F1 grid is going up or down for this year – and over the years in general. Historically, the only thing used for it, is the official WDC results, and we all know (or feel) that’s not conclusive. You could make a double line graph: one for what was expected at the start of each season, and one that reflects how it’s turned out, over time.
I clearly remember discussions here that the level went up, a year ago or so. (Maybe even two years; time seems to really fly these days.) I don’t find comments or discussions of that sort now.
I even put things in a spreadsheet then, for over the -then- last 10 years, with as objective qualifications as I could manage. Turned out the fluctuation wasn’t all that big. Using the RF driver rankings might not be that objective at all, as those are always in comparison to the other drivers of that season, even apart from the disagreement they so frequently seem to invoke.
Anyway, with F1 generally loudly yelling they’re getting more professional every year, you’d expect the average driver level to go up as well. Personally though, I doubt that’s what’s really happening.
Just some food for thought.
notagrumpyfan
20th December 2024, 14:23
I don’t follow F2 (a lot) and wonder how true F2 fans rate/rank the recent graduates into F1.
Maybe include Piastri (and Sargeant) as a known force (and Colapinto as a bonus).
Purely based on their F2 careers I’d say:
– Piastri
– Bortoleto
– Sargeant
– Antoneli
– Colapinto
– Bearman
– Hadjar
– Doohan
– Lawson
But might not mean anything for their current ability and F1 potential (case in point: Sargeant).
Jamie Franklin
20th December 2024, 14:28
Here’s my order based on years of watching junior racing:
– Piastri
– Bortoleto
– Antonelli
– Bearman (got to ignore 2024!)
– Hadjar
– Lawson
– Doohan
– Sargeant
– Colapinto
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
20th December 2024, 17:16
Six out of twenty is a large percentage turnover. A lot of relatively inexperienced drivers, in F1 terms all vying to show they’re the best. Expect lots of accidents. I hope teams can put a budget aside for this!
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
20th December 2024, 20:40
No Finns on the grid? Just a lad named after one, and a third driver back with his old team. An unbroken run punching above their weight since about 1989 and finally their luck’s run out.
F1 without any Brazilians felt wrong too, so I’m pleased that’s fixed.
notagrumpyfan
20th December 2024, 21:59
Finnish will not race a lot in F1, but a lot will finish F1 races.