{"id":501267,"date":"2026-05-06T02:43:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T02:43:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=501267"},"modified":"2026-05-06T04:23:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T04:23:47","slug":"cursed-pattern-unfolding-for-verstappens-red-bull-partner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/?p=501267","title":{"rendered":"Cursed pattern unfolding for Verstappen's Red Bull partner"},"content":{"rendered":"

Isack Hadjar is falling into a very familiar pattern in the second Red Bull<\/a> seat.<\/p>\n

Following the upgrades introduced in Miami<\/a>, Max Verstappen<\/a> found a new level of synergy with the car. His new teammate however, trailed further behind.<\/p>\n

After being disqualified from qualifying, Hadjar crashed out of the race on Monday (AEST) and left Hard Rock Stadium empty-handed and "pissed off" at his costly error.<\/p>\n

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"This was a tough one, just like breaking the car is pissing me off a lot," he said.<\/p>\n

\"Isack<\/p>\n

"I think that was easy points, considering the car I had. I just threw it all away.<\/p>\n

"I can't really remember (the crash), because it went by very quickly. So I don't have very good memory of exactly what happened, just felt like a big hit.<\/p>\n

"I just didn't see it coming, and then the car was broken. I went in the other wall, couldn't stop it. It just shows how much you need to be focused, and I wasn't."<\/p>\n

This loss of confidence has become a hallmark for both young and experienced drivers tasked with partnering arguably one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1<\/a> history.<\/p>\n

It is difficult to recall a time when Red Bull's second seat was truly locked in since Daniel Ricciardo<\/a>'s departure at the end of 2018.<\/p>\n

Since then, Pierre Gasly<\/a>, Alex Albon<\/a>, Sergio Perez<\/a>, Liam Lawson<\/a> and Yuki Tsunoda<\/a> have all tried their hand and been brushed aside.<\/p>\n

\"Red<\/p>\n

Perez lifted the lid in 2025 regarding the psychological toll of being Verstappen's teammate, offering a grim perspective on the second seat curse.<\/p>\n

"The minute I signed my exit deal with Red Bull, I knew that 'poor guy who comes here' because it's a very difficult place," he admitted.<\/p>\n

"Obviously, being next to Max is very difficult, but being next to Max in Red Bull is something people don't understand, and there are so many things that I could tell, but simply it's a very difficult job for a driver.<\/p>\n

"There is no driver that can survive there. It doesn't matter if you bring a Hamilton or a Leclerc; whoever you bring is going to struggle massively.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

"It's a very unique driving style you have to constantly be adapting to the needs of Max, simple as that."<\/p>\n

Hadjar earned his 2026 seat after a breakout rookie campaign in 2025 with Racing Bulls, highlighted by a podium in the Netherlands<\/a>, effectively displacing Tsunoda<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, he is now encountering the same technical wall that most of the Red Bull rejects have faced.<\/p>\n

A DNF result in Melbourne<\/a> and Miami, 12th in Japan and his only points haul coming after an eighth place result in China – it's not been the start Hadjar would have wanted in the senior team.<\/p>\n

It should be mentioned, Hadjar is inheriting a completely new Red Bull package that is currently looking like the third-best car in the field, not the quickest car like others had.<\/p>\n

But the upgrades Red Bull brought to Miami allowed Verstappen to come alive in his typical style.<\/p>\n

He claimed second position on the grid in qualifying<\/a> and if not for a spin on the opening lap, would have surely been in the mix for the victory.<\/p>\n

Albon earlier described this game of never ending catch-up that Verstappen's teammates face once the Dutchman finds his rhythm.<\/p>\n

He argued that the longer Verstappen is driving the car with new upgrades, the more the Dutchman becomes confident, while his Red Bull teammates battle their waning confidence.<\/p>\n

"Many people say that the car is built for him, he's a bit like Michael Schumacher<\/a> at Ferrari. He has created this team around him, but the truth is that the car is what it is. He is very fast, and he has a unique driving style, it's not so easy to adapt to it," Albon said on the High Performance<\/em> podcast.<\/p>\n

\"Analysis<\/p>\n

"Everyone has their own driving style. Max – his level of sensitivity and sharpness regarding the front end is on a whole other level.<\/p>\n

"It's like turning the sensitivity up (on a computer) to the maximum, moving the mouse, and having it move all over the screen. It's a bit like what you feel, it becomes so fast that you become tense.<\/p>\n

"What ended up happening … you start off being slightly less fast but not by much.<\/p>\n

"And then as the season progresses and Max wants the front end to be sharper and it becomes sharper, Max gets faster and faster.<\/p>\n

"To catch up on your delay, you must take a little more risk. And when you know that you only have a few attempts left before the final session, you try a little harder and then, 'okay, I went out, I crashed'.<\/p>\n

\"Isack<\/p>\n

"So you have to start over, you have lost some confidence and it takes a little more time.<\/p>\n

"The gap widens a bit and then the next time you try to go out, you will spin out again. And it starts to have a snowball effect and each time the car becomes livelier, you start to get more tense."<\/p>\n

Hadjar must now find a way to break this cycle quickly.<\/p>\n

Unlike previous years, the safety net of a 'demotion' to Racing Bulls<\/a> is vanishing.<\/p>\n

Liam Lawson and rookie Arvid Lindblad<\/a> are driving like a formidable duo for the squad and Hadjar has nowhere to go but out.<\/p>\n

While the departure of the famously 'trigger-happy' Helmut Marko<\/a> from the Red Bull outfit may grant Hadjar a slightly longer leash than his predecessors, the pressure is mounting as auditions in the cursed Red Bull seat are famously quick and unforgiving.<\/p>\n

Formula 1 resumes back on track in Montreal, Canada, with the next race set for May 25.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Isack Hadjar is falling into a very familiar pattern in the second Red Bull seat. Following the upgrades introduced in Miami, Max Verstappen found a […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":501269,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501267"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=501267"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501267\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":501275,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501267\/revisions\/501275"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/501269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=501267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=501267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportinfo.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=501267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}