Isack Hadjar: The Rookie Everyone Is Talking About

4 Sept

Fifteen races into his rookie Formula 1 season, Isack Hadjar is officially on the map. The 20-year-old French-Algerian just scored his first F1 podium at the Dutch Grand Prix, delivering Visa Cash App RB’s best result in years — and honestly, it feels like the start of something big.

Let’s rewind to March. Australia. Season opener. Hadjar’s big debut with Visa Cash App Racing Bulls. Expectations? High. Reality? Brutal.

On the formation lap, in wet conditions, he spun into the wall before lights out. Race over before it even began. Cameras caught him walking back to the paddock, visibly crushed, until Anthony Hamilton — yes, Lewis’ dad — stopped to give him a pep talk.

Later, Isack admitted:

“I thought my life was over.”

And honestly? Understandable. That kind of debut can mentally destroy a rookie. But instead of letting it define him, Hadjar used it as fuel.

Fast-forward a few months, and he’s standing on the podium at Zandvoort, champagne in hand, alongside Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri. But how did he get here?

A dream born in Paris

Isack’s story begins in Paris, 2004, with one movie: Cars. He watched it at just two years old and decided racing was his destiny. By the age of seven, his dad — a quantum physicist and lifelong F1 fan — handed him his first kart, and weekends instantly became race days.

He trained at a small rental track near home, where instructors immediately told his parents, “This kid’s special.” His dad became his first mechanic, his mum is now his manager, and his helmet? Covered in physics formulas as a tribute to his family.

Climbing the ladder

Hadjar’s rise through the junior ranks was anything but easy:

2019 - French F4 → First single-seater win at Spa, finishes P3 overall.

2021 - FRECA → Rookie of the Year after a Monaco victory that caught Red Bull’s attention.

2022 - Formula 3 → Joins the Red Bull Junior Team, scores 3 wins, finishes P4 overall.

2023 - Formula 2 Rookie Year → A difficult season. No wins, big doubts, but Red Bull stuck by him and even gave him F1 practice sessions with AlphaTauri and the senior team.

2024 - F2 Redemption → Racing for Campos, Hadjar delivered 4 wins, 4 podiums, and fought Gabriel Bortoleto for the title until Abu Dhabi… where a stall on the grid cost him the championship. But F1 was already calling.

Fun fact: Le Parisien nicknamed him “Le Petit Prost”, comparing him to the legendary Alain Prost. No pressure, right?

Finding His Pace

After the heartbreak in Australia, Hadjar reset completely. Hours on RB’s Faenza simulators, endless data work, and his simracing background gave him the tools to rebuild his confidence.

And the results started coming:

P8 at Suzuka on his first time there.

P6 in Monaco, finishing as the best driver outside the top teams.

P7 in Spain, where Laurent Mekies, RB’s TP at the moment, said he “killed the midfield”.

Five points finishes by mid-season → P11 in the championship.

Mekies summed him up perfectly:

“He’s like a sponge. He listens, processes, applies. That’s what makes him special.”

The Weekend Everything Clicked

Then came the Dutch Grand Prix — his best weekend yet.

Hadjar qualified P4, his highest start so far, and in the race, he drove like a man on a mission: defending against Leclerc, holding off Russell, and making zero mistakes.

When Lando Norris was forced to retire late in the race, Hadjar seized the opportunity and crossed the line in P3, claiming his first Formula 1 podium — and Visa Cash App RB’s first since Pierre Gasly’s podium in Baku, 2021.

After the race, he said:

“It feels a bit unreal. Already finishing P4 on pure pace would’ve been massive, but to bring home P3… I’m so proud of the guys. We maximised everything.”

RB, Red Bull & What’s Next

Naturally, everyone’s wondering: will Hadjar move to Red Bull Racing? Sounds like the dream, right?

Well… not necessarily. The second Red Bull seat has been a challenge for years — Gasly, Albon, Pérez, Tsunoda — the list goes on. The car is built around Max Verstappen’s driving style, and adapting to it has proven brutal for even the most talented drivers.

Meanwhile, Visa Cash App RB is thriving. The results are strong, the atmosphere’s good, and honestly, staying put doesn’t seem like a bad thing at all.

Plus, 2026 brings new regulations: fresh aero, new engines, and possibly a whole new grid order. Sometimes, a “promotion” isn’t really an upgrade. For now, Hadjar’s exactly where he needs to be.

Our Favorite Influencer

Despite the podiums, the hype, and the headlines, Hadjar’s still a 20-year-old kid from Paris. Plus, he’s becoming our favorite F1 influencer.

RB’s social media team knows they’ve struck gold with him. He’s natural, funny, relatable… The kind of guy who’ll give you a meme-worthy video on Thursday and a killer overtake on Sunday. This balance is exactly why people are obsessed with him. He feels human in a sport that sometimes doesn’t.

This Is Just The Beginning

From crashing out on his very first formation lap to standing on the Zandvoort podium, Isack Hadjar’s rookie season has been the ultimate comeback arc. He’s proven he’s fast, adaptable, and fearless but also smart enough to play the long game.

Because right now, it’s not about rushing to Red Bull. It’s about building his story, one race at a time. And if Zandvoort is any indication, this is just the beginning.

El Box de Julz .