Liam Lawson will stay alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, with Isack Hadjar ruled out again as he continues to recover from a wrist injury.
Red Bull confirmed the decision overnight, ending any hope Hadjar had of making an early return after missing the Dutch Grand Prix.
Lawson stays up, Hadjar waits
Hadjar had spoken optimistically about being back in the car for Sunday’s race, but the team has opted for caution. The Frenchman will sit out a second consecutive event, his comeback still clouded by uncertainty with no indication yet on whether he will be fit for next week’s Spanish Grand Prix.
“Liam will drive alongside Max at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, while Isack continues to make encouraging progress following the wrist injury sustained during the summer break,” Red Bull said in a statement on social media. The team added that it is “closely monitoring his rehabilitation and will take no unnecessary risks with his return to competition,” while wishing him a speedy recovery.
Hadjar injured his wrist during the summer break, reportedly in a boxing workout just days before the Dutch Grand Prix. He spent that weekend on the sidelines, wearing a brace and watching from the garage instead of the cockpit.
In a Red Bull video from Zandvoort, his frustration was obvious. He called it his first injury “ever” and admitted it felt “weird to be on the bench” and that he was “not happy about it,” though he noted the lack of swelling and improving mobility as reasons to hope for a quick return. Monza, though, has come too soon.
Tsunoda back in the mix
Lawson’s temporary promotion from Racing Bulls continues for at least one more round, and his form has justified the call. The New Zealander finished seventh at Zandvoort in his first race back with Red Bull, a composed, points-scoring drive that underlined his growth in what has been his strongest season in Formula 1 so far.
His step up opened the door for Yuki Tsunoda to reappear on the grid. The Japanese driver, dropped by Red Bull in December, made his F1 return with Racing Bulls at the Dutch Grand Prix and finished 11th. He now gets a second outing in Lawson’s usual seat.
Lawson sits ninth in the drivers’ standings, one place behind Hadjar, and has almost double the points of Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad. That body of work has dragged him back into Red Bull colours after he was previously cut loose after just two races in 2025.
Now he heads to Monza, the Temple of Speed, with another chance to prove he belongs in a front-running seat — while Hadjar watches, waits, and wonders how quickly his wrist, and his season, will let him fight again.
