Isack Hadjar returns to racing with Red Bull at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, where Baku’s walls punish hesitation and its long straight ends in a brutal braking zone. Hadjar last raced in July. Since then, Liam Lawson has driven his car through three Grands Prix, and Red Bull has continued working on the RB22.
The injury interrupted a promising start alongside Max Verstappen. Hadjar had reached the podium in Monaco, finished in the top 10 eight times and out-qualified his four-time champion teammate on three occasions. Then a wrist injury sustained during summer training took him out of Zandvoort, Monza and Madrid. Red Bull confirmed his return on Tuesday, but clearance answers only the medical question. On Thursday, Hadjar must start finding his braking points, trusting the steering again and telling his engineers what their car feels like at speed. Baku will give him plenty to report.
Red Bull gave the wrist time to heal
The team has said Hadjar hurt his wrist while training during the summer break. It has not publicly identified the exercise or released a precise diagnosis. Laurent Mekies, Red Bull Racing’s team principal, described the injury as minor in August, but the recovery kept Hadjar out of three consecutive races.
Mekies knows the demands of Hadjar’s seat. He took charge of Red Bull Racing after Christian Horner’s departure in 2025; Alan Permane now leads sister team Racing Bulls. After the Madrid race, Mekies said Hadjar had suffered no setback. Red Bull planned to assess him and use simulator work to judge whether his wrist could handle driving loads before making the Baku call.
A driver needs that wrist for far more than turning into corners. Through the wheel, Hadjar feels the front tires bite under braking and senses when they begin to slide. He must make small corrections as the car rides bumps or moves under acceleration. Baku compresses those demands into a lap that runs from open, high-speed sections into narrow streets. Red Bull had good reason to test the wrist before sending him there.
On Tuesday, the team said Hadjar had recovered and would return alongside Verstappen. That decision ends the wait. It also puts the next part of his comeback where everyone can see it: on the timing screens and between Baku’s barriers.
Lawson collected points while Hadjar missed laps
Lawson made his substitute stint count. The official Formula 1 results show that he finished seventh at Zandvoort and sixth in Madrid, taking 14 points from those two races. Monza proved rougher: contact and front-wing damage disrupted his afternoon, and he finished 14th. Mekies praised the New Zealander’s work after Madrid, particularly the points he brought home on short notice.
Those results also sharpen the stakes for Hadjar. Lawson showed what a Red Bull driver could do in the car during his absence. More painfully, he gained three weekends of experience that Hadjar could only study from the sidelines.
The RB22 did not stand still. Formula 1’s technical reports noted a small reliability change to Red Bull’s front suspension bodywork at Zandvoort. In Madrid, the team changed its rear wheel bodywork and the geometry of the floor bib. Hadjar’s task now is to feel how the current car behaves, especially when its balance changes across a run.
The driver moves around him now unwind. Lawson returns to Racing Bulls. Yuki Tsunoda, who filled Lawson’s seat for three races, goes back to his test and reserve role. Tsunoda lost his full-time Red Bull seat at the end of 2025, when Hadjar earned promotion for this season.
Baku will test his confidence quickly
Baku offers Hadjar no gentle opening. Cars charge down the shoreline straight before braking heavily for Turn 1. The circuit then threads through tight city streets, including a section beside the old walls where a small error can end a lap. Teams must also choose how much downforce to keep for those corners without surrendering too much speed on the straight.
For Hadjar, Thursday practice will begin with the basics: braking consistently, placing the car near the barriers and building enough confidence to attack the next lap harder. Red Bull will want clear feedback too. If the RB22 slides on corner entry or resists rotation through the slower turns, its engineers need to know whether a setup change helps. Hadjar needs to learn that from inside the cockpit.
This year’s schedule gives him an unusual timetable. The FIA moved the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix from Sunday to Saturday, September 26, to avoid a clash with Azerbaijan’s Remembrance Day on September 27. Practice therefore starts Thursday, with qualifying on Friday. Saturday’s main event remains a 51-lap Grand Prix, not a sprint.
That leaves two practice days before Hadjar must produce a qualifying lap. At Baku, a cautious run can leave time on the table; an overcommitted one can put the car into a wall. He will have to find the narrow space between them sooner than he might wish.
The laps that will shape Hadjar’s return
Isack Hadjar returns to racing with Red Bull at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix carrying a strong first half of the season and a three-race gap in his preparation. Both matter. His Monaco podium showed how well he can handle a demanding street circuit. Yet Baku presents a different combination of braking, straight-line speed and exposed walls, with a wrist injury still fresh in the story of his season.
Thursday’s first runs should offer the clearest early evidence. Hadjar does not need to set the fastest practice time to show progress. He does need to brake with conviction, make clean corrections and give Red Bull useful answers about the car. By Friday, the expectation will rise. Qualifying places speed and precision on the same lap, with no room to spend a corner feeling his way back.
Saturday will demand more. Over 51 laps, Hadjar must manage tires, traffic and any interruption that changes the race around him. Lawson has just shown that the second Red Bull can score valuable points. Verstappen remains the benchmark on the other side of Hadjar’s garage. Neither fact makes the comeback easier.
Before his injury, Hadjar had begun to turn promise into results. Now the visor comes down in Baku, and the questions grow immediate. How late can he brake into Turn 1? How close will he run to the old city walls? The answers will come from his hands, one lap at a time.
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FAQs
Why did Isack Hadjar miss three races?
Hadjar injured his wrist during summer training. He missed the races at Zandvoort, Monza and Madrid while he recovered.
Who replaced Hadjar at Red Bull?
Liam Lawson drove alongside Max Verstappen for three races. He finished seventh at Zandvoort and sixth in Madrid.
When is the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix?
The 51-lap race takes place Saturday, September 26. Organizers moved it from Sunday to avoid a clash with Azerbaijan’s Remembrance Day.
Why could Baku prove difficult for Hadjar’s return?
The circuit pairs heavy braking with narrow streets and close walls. Hadjar must rebuild his feel for the RB22 while leaving little room for error.
