Isack Hadjar Cleared to Race for Red Bull in Baku

Isack Hadjar is back. Six weeks after a freak wrist fracture in the gym halted his momentum and parked his Red Bull, the Frenchman has been cleared to race at this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The timing matters. Baku is no place to feel your way in.

Hadjar’s injury came on the eve of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort during a training session, the kind of everyday preparation that suddenly turned costly. The damage ruled him out of the races in the Netherlands, Italy and Spain, with Red Bull opting for caution rather than forcing a rushed comeback.

He admitted the layoff hit hard.

"The last month has been tricky for me; it's the first time in my life that I've not been racing and that's a weird feeling to get used to," he said, reflecting on a spell that left him watching from the garage instead of attacking apexes.

Now the focus is Baku’s unforgiving walls and long straights. Hadjar knows there is no margin for rustiness on a street track that punishes hesitation.

He called the return “just so exciting,” stressing how vital it is to arrive fully prepared for a circuit where a single lapse can end a weekend. It is a reset point in his season, and he was quick to credit the team for not forcing the issue.

"I want to thank Laurent [Mekies, Red Bull team principal] and the team for their patience throughout this process; it was important not to rush the decision and now I feel ready to get back to what I do best - driving."

While Hadjar healed, the car did not sit idle.

Lawson makes his case

Racing Bulls regular Liam Lawson stepped up into the Red Bull seat and made the most of it. Seventh at Zandvoort. Sixth in Spain. Solid, sharp, and consistently in the points.

Monza told a harsher story. An engine penalty dumped him at the back of the grid, and a clash with Nico Hulkenberg left him nursing a damaged front wing and no real chance to recover. The weekend never truly belonged to him.

Even so, Lawson left his short stint satisfied with the statement he managed to make.

"It's been overall quite positive," he said. "I managed to score in two of the three. I think Monza was tough just with the whole layout of the weekend, and then the engine penalty. Then obviously having damage in the race really ruined it for us. But I think overall we've had good speed."

The numbers back him up: two points finishes from three starts in a car that demanded instant adaptation.

With Hadjar now fit, Lawson returns to Racing Bulls, slotting back into the role that had been temporarily filled in his absence.

Tsunoda steps back after brief 2026 audition

Yuki Tsunoda, drafted in as Lawson’s stand-in at Racing Bulls, now moves back to his regular reserve driver duties.

His cameo was brief but telling. Tsunoda adjusted quickly to the demands of the 2026-spec machinery and grabbed a point at the Italian Grand Prix, a reward for a composed drive in a chaotic race. That result, though, still hangs in the balance, with Audi’s appeal over a grid formation issue after an early red flag yet to be resolved.

So the deck reshuffles again. Hadjar back at Red Bull. Lawson restored to Racing Bulls. Tsunoda waiting in the wings.

Baku will show whether Hadjar’s enforced pause has sharpened his hunger or left a trace of rust. On a circuit that shows no mercy, the answer will come quickly.