“He’s working hard”: Racing Bulls boss full of praise for rookie Isack Hadjar

Racing Bulls star Isack Hadjar is currently the second-best-performing driver after Max Verstappen from the Red Bull family. Both Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda trail Hadjar in the F1 standings going into the summer break. VCARB Team Principal Alan Permane recently came out and hailed the French-Algerian driver.

Isack Hadjar battled Gabriel Bortoleto for the 2024 F2 championship and lost the title by a whisker. With Sergio Perez leaving Red Bull and Liam Lawson getting promoted to the senior team, Hadjar got his F1 chance at Racing Bulls.

While there has been instability around the second Red Bull seat, IsackHadjar has consistently performed in the VCARB. As Christian Horner was fired by Red Bull on July 9, 2025, VCARB's Laurent Mekies was promoted to the role of Red Bull Team Principal.

Alan Permane, who was sacked by Alpine in 2023, was signed by Racing Bulls ahead of the 2024 season. With Laurent Mekies moving to the senior team, Permane was announced as the Team Principal of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls for the foreseeable future.

F1 Grand Prix of Hungary - Source: Getty

One race weekend into F1 as VCARB's Team Principal, Alan Permane featured as one of the Team Principals for the FIA press conference at the 2025 Hungarian GP. Permane was asked to assess Isack Hadjar's performance and personality to which he replied,

“I would say he's a driver that when things aren't going well or when he's missing a bit to the other driver or the other car is a bit quicker, the first thing he does is look at himself. I think that's a strength.”

“Sometimes if he's not performing, he may be a little bit unhappy, but he's focusing, he's working hard. He doesn't instantly point his fingers at the car or in Mario (Isola’s) direction. The first thing he does is ask, “What can I do better?” It won't hurt to be cheerful, and that lifts the team as well, but he's working hard,” he added

---

Racing Bulls Boss on the possibility of Isack Hadjar's promotion to Red Bull

Yuki Tsunoda replaced Liam Lawson for the second Red Bull seat just two races into the 2025 season. However, the Japanese driver hasn't fared well, scoring points at just three races since making the move.

Isack Hadjar has been rumored to replace Tsunoda at Red Bull. Racing Bulls CEO Peter Bayer commented on the matter. He said,

“We have strong alignment internally that we need to go through this year calmly, with everyone focusing on their jobs. I’m sure that, post-summer break, discussions will start about 2026, but honestly, I dare to say that in ’25, we all want to keep it calm and, talking about Isack, give him the chance to grow, to learn. Honestly, he is incredible,” via PlanetF1

Yuki Tsunoda runs out of a Red Bull contract at the end of the 2025 season, and Isack Hadjar is a possible replacement for the 2026 season