“Impressive; fast and no mistakes.” Praise from Helmut Marko doesn’t come much higher than that, especially when it’s about Isack Hadjar’s first day as a full-time Formula 1 driver for Racing Bulls in Australia.
Hadjar, the last of the 2025 F1 rookies to be confirmed, didn’t come into the series with the same level of hype as drivers like Andrea Kimi Antonelli or Oliver Bearman. The 20-year-old, who finished as the runner-up in F2, had only 400 laps of F1 experience before his debut at Albert Park. Yet, far from being overwhelmed, he displayed a calm and composed demeanor, building the foundations of what looks like a solid weekend ahead. The real test will come when the stopwatch matters on Saturday and Sunday, but for now, Hadjar’s start has been promising.
On Thursday, he experienced the fanfare of being an F1 driver, passing through the iconic Melbourne Walk. This area, lined with passionate fans waiting for autographs and selfies, turned into a bit of a marathon as Hadjar took over 20 minutes to make his way through. He eventually made it to the paddock just in time for his first meeting.
During his media session, Hadjar appeared relaxed, even though he wasn’t keen on public speaking. The conversation started with questions about his 10-year stint as a judoka, which helped break the ice. Despite his reserved nature, he didn’t seem fazed by the situation.
“I feel the pressure I put on myself to perform, but external pressure will always be a bit lower than that,” Hadjar said. “The pressure to get to F1 is more difficult, because now that I’m here, I’ll only be judged by my performance within the team. In F2 and F3, there are too many factors outside of your control.”
His PR team worked hard to ensure his first on-track experience was as smooth as possible, minimizing distractions so he could focus on what truly matters—driving.
“We really try to isolate him from all the noise outside,” said team principal Laurent Mekies in an interview with Sky Sports F1. “It’s important that he gets the laps and becomes comfortable in the car. He needs to take it step by step. It’s a long weekend, a long season, so we focus on making sure he’s at ease with the car.”
After an early breakfast on Friday, Isack Hadjar joined his teammate Yuki Tsunoda for a fan interaction session at the F1 fan forum, marking one of his first official engagements as an F1 driver. By 11:00am, however, his focus shifted entirely to driving, attending a final engineering meeting before taking to the track for FP1.
Despite Albert Park’s challenging nature for a debutant, Red Bull stuck to its usual run plan without adjusting it to ease Hadjar in. While other rookies, such as Oliver Bearman from Haas, struggled, with Bearman even crashing out in the first practice session, Hadjar was immediately on the pace. He completed 25 trouble-free laps, finishing ninth overall.
This solid performance continued into FP2, where Hadjar claimed sixth, just two and a half tenths behind Tsunoda in fourth. While Red Bull’s cars appeared to be running with lighter fuel loads, which may have skewed their position, Hadjar’s performance was still impressive, especially considering the context of the weekend.
Members of Red Bull’s engineering team were impressed with Hadjar’s precise feedback and mature approach to the session. His strong start as an F1 driver also caught the attention of the wider Red Bull family, with Helmut Marko’s positive comments further affirming the team’s confidence in him.
Team principal Laurent Mekies also expressed his satisfaction with both of his drivers, although he was careful not to get too carried away with the lap times at this early stage. “It was a good day, especially with Isack being a rookie here, with all the pressure, a city track, and rain forecast for Sunday… it’s a lot to handle,” Mekies noted. “He only had one day of testing with Christian [Horner]’s team before heading to Bahrain. He’s still in an early phase, but he did a good job. Yuki was also quite at ease, and we now have a good baseline. But don’t read too much into the lap times.”
Of course, Hadjar’s solid Friday performance would mean little if he were to make a mistake in Saturday’s qualifying. However, despite being one of the quieter rookies with fewer expectations, Hadjar quietly went about his job, making a positive start to his F1 career.