Laurent Mekies believes Isack Hadjar is finally helping Red Bull overcome one of its most persistent Formula 1 problems: extracting consistent performance from the second car alongside Max Verstappen. After years of instability in that seat, the Red Bull team principal and CEO says Hadjar’s progress is providing the team with exactly the trajectory it had been searching for.
The French driver was promoted after just one Formula 1 season with Racing Bulls to partner Max Verstappen in 2026. His arrival followed a period of significant turnover in which Sergio Pérez, Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda had all occupied the second Red Bull seat during the previous 14 months. After a less spectacular start, Hadjar has steadily strengthened his position and his contribution to the team.
His progress has already become one of the more encouraging elements of Red Bull’s difficult season, with Isack Hadjar’s development at the 2026 F1 summer break providing evidence of how quickly he has adapted to life alongside Max Verstappen.
Laurent Mekies says fixing Red Bull’s second car was a major priority
Laurent Mekies explained that improving the performance of Red Bull’s second car was one of several major objectives he identified when he took charge of the team last year.
“On our shopping list, as Red Bull, we obviously had the power unit, getting back to competitiveness as soon as possible, but we also had, ‘We need to sort out the second car’,” Laurent Mekies told RACER. “We are conscious that we may not have done things perfectly in the past. And it was absolutely a top priority to make sure we didn’t get it wrong with Isack Hadjar.”
The second Red Bull seat has repeatedly proved difficult to master during the Max Verstappen era, increasing the importance of finding a driver capable not only of delivering results but also of contributing consistently to development and race-weekend preparation.
Isack Hadjar’s work ethic impresses Red Bull
Laurent Mekies stressed that much of the credit belongs to Isack Hadjar himself, particularly because of the commitment he showed immediately after joining the Milton Keynes operation.
“Don’t get me wrong, the credit goes to Isack. He arrived in the UK a few days after signing with us at the beginning of the year. He comes to the factory every other week or every other day. If he’s not in the simulator, he’s with his engineers.”
According to Laurent Mekies, the Frenchman has adopted a deliberately straightforward approach: absorb information, work closely with the team and learn as much as possible from Max Verstappen.
“He has adopted an approach where he keeps his feet on the ground and his head down. He just wants to learn every day from the team, from Max Verstappen. And he gets better every single time he gets in the car.”
“That’s what we see, a small improvement every time he takes the car out. Sometimes you see it, sometimes you don’t see it because of the circumstances of the weekend, but that is the reality.”
Why a stronger Isack Hadjar helps the whole Red Bull team
More consistent performance from both cars brings benefits that go well beyond the Drivers’ Championship. For Red Bull, having two competitive drivers expands the team’s strategic options and gives its engineers a much broader pool of information when comparing set-ups, tyres and development work.
“It’s fantastic news for the team. It is what we need,” Laurent Mekies said.
He pointed to Spa as an example of how Red Bull can use both cars more effectively when Hadjar is operating at a competitive level.
“It also helps in terms of team cohesion and bringing everyone together because we have two cars and we can play with the two cars – as we did at Spa, for example, in qualifying. But not only that, it helps when you have to share set-up items, it helps when you have to share tyre tests or whatever.”
Isack Hadjar entered the summer break eighth in the 2026 Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship, while Max Verstappen sits sixth, illustrating how Red Bull is receiving a more meaningful points contribution from both sides of the garage.
Red Bull believes Hadjar still has much more potential
Laurent Mekies is not suggesting that Hadjar has reached his ceiling. Instead, Red Bull believes the most encouraging element is that the French driver continues to improve while still having significant performance left to unlock.
“So it’s only the beginning. He knows there is still a lot more to unlock and that’s the exciting part. But for sure, the trajectory is the best we have had on that second car for a long time.”
For a Red Bull team that has spent several seasons searching for stability alongside Max Verstappen, that assessment carries particular significance. Isack Hadjar still has plenty to prove, but Laurent Mekies believes the direction of travel is already markedly different from what Red Bull has experienced with its second car in recent years.
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