NEW TIMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT MIAMI RACE WEEK 2025 GUIDE 16 May 1-7, 2025 NEW TIMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT MIAMI RACE WEEK 2025 GUIDE 16 May 1-7, 2025 “My mother, through her connections and her work, made sure I had enough funding to drive in go-karts, but honestly, I think apart from the first couple of years, go-karts are the worst memory I have,” Hadjar recalls. “When it started to get really expensive and the level was getting super high, I was frustrated that I couldn’t afford to do the whole program. I was only doing the big races, but not the preparation or the practice mileage. I was at school. It was really frustrating. She did everything possible. From karting to Formula 4 to here, we just maximized what we had. She used to take me to F4 races on her own. It was a miracle.” In 2017, the family’s dedication led to a spot at the FFSA Academy in Le Mans. Under the wing of the driver development program that has boosted the careers of F1 racers such as Pierre Gasly and the late Jules Bianchi, Hadjar’s career took off. He finished third in French F4, raced F3 in Asia and in 2021 stepped up to Formula Regional, three rungs below F1. There, the wheels nearly came off. “It was tough,” Hadjar says. “Knowing that every time I hit the track, I needed to deliver, because a good opportunity may happen—or not. It’s really bad pressure to have as a kid. Money— you should not think about it, but you’re like, ‘If I don’t perform, I’m going to disappoint my whole family.’ It’s too much. Even though they don’t think like this, you do. It’s always like that, because you don’t know where you’re heading. Especially in Formula Regional—we weren’t going to finish the season. There was no money. But then Red Bull kicked in.” Hadjar’s pivotal moment came in 2022 in Monaco. With Formula Regional racing on the same bill as F1 for the only time that season, it provided crucial exposure to talent spotters and decision makers. Hadjar took a dominant lights- to-flag victory. Marko came calling and Hadjar joined the Red Bull Junior program. With the “big, big deal” of Red Bull support secured, Hadjar blossomed. He finished third in the Asia series of Formula Regional and fourth in Formula 3 in 2022. And then last year, he reached the final step on the increasingly competitive road to F1— Formula 2. A season-long tussle with Brazil’s Gabriel Bortoleto (now racing in F1 with Sauber) led to a final-round showdown in Abu Dhabi. Four and a half points behind the Brazilian going into the weekend, Hadjar had to beat his rival to secure the crown. Lining up on the grid two places behind Bortoleto, it was all to play for. The lights went out for the start—and Hadjar stalled. “I was really furious,” he admits. “I would have accepted it if I lost, but I didn’t lose. I just couldn’t fight. Not having the opportunity to fight is the most frustrating thing.” It was a reaction that surprised the young driver. “It was strange because at that point I knew pretty much what was going on with my future. Not 100 percent—you never know in this sport, but I knew the result in Abu Dhabi, whatever it was, wouldn’t impact my future. But I was so furious. And that’s when I realized that I’m really a fighter. I knew I was going to Formula 1; I was pretty sure. So, it was just like ‘don’t care, just go and have fun now,’ but in fact, it was the worst day of my life because I’m here to win, no matter the championship. And I was angry at not being able to fight.” The fury would return just a few months later. Inside the top 10 through Friday practice and a useful 11th in qualifying, Hadjar’s F1 debut in Australia got off to a flying start. However, on Sunday the rain came and on a greasy, treacherous and unfamiliar track, the rookie spun into the barriers on the formation lap before the start. This time the fight was over before he’d even got in the ring. And this time the feeling was worse. “In Formula 2, I was just angry because I couldn’t do anything,” Hadjar says. “I did my job the whole season and it went wrong once. But in Melbourne, I f***ed up. It is the worst feeling in the world. I don’t care what others did in other races. I never had this feeling before. I was ashamed, embarrassed for my guys. I wanted to disappear. I was trying to hide from everyone, just closing my eyes. It’s the walk of shame when you come back to the paddock. It wasn’t sadness, it was anger.” On this agonizing walk, the 20-year-old was consoled by Anthony Hamilton, father of Hadjar’s racing idol, Lewis, and what had been an excruciating moment became a memory the young racer can now cherish. “He said it reminded him of Lewis parking the car in the pit entry in Shanghai,” Hadjar says, referencing the moment when Hamilton saw his 2007 championship chances evaporate in a soggy spin. “It was a special moment, sharing time with Anthony, the dad of my idol. Lewis sent me a message later that day. They’re really classy guys.” Hamilton has been Hadjar’s model since childhood. To be comforted by the father of his idol and stand on the drivers’ parade bus chatting with the seven-time champion is a reality he can barely believe. “Lewis is like the main character in a TV show I watched growing up,” Hadjar jokes. “He’s unreachable.” The mindset and pace are traits Hadjar has tried to emulate since. At race two, in China, Hadjar managed to shake off the Melbourne mishap, qualifying seventh, just 0.26 seconds behind Max Verstappen and higher than any other Red Bull driver. In Japan he was seventh on the grid again and grabbed his first championship points with a battling drive to eighth. And in Saudi Arabia, Hadjar walked away with points again, finishing P10 after qualifying in 14th. Team boss Laurent Mekies reckons it’s only the start of what Hadjar can do. “He has been outstanding, really,” Mekies says. “In fairness to Isack, he had one day of dry testing in an F1 in his life before going to the Bahrain test. Then a day and a half later, he’s in Melbourne. And if you take that into consideration and see what he has done in Melbourne—I think he was half a tenth from Q3—it was an outstanding debut. With what happened in the formation lap? He bounced back straight away, went to China—a track he had never driven—and put the car in P7 in qualifying. What Isack has been doing is outstanding. The raw speed is undoubtedly there and we’re looking forward to seeing how much more he’s going to bring to this quite fantastic starting point.” And with points in the bag, Hadjar’s confidence, never far below the surface, is soaring. “Am I sure of my abilities? I’m here to find out,” he says. “I want to believe that in the future, I have the potential to be the best of the best. That’s what I’m striving for. Of course, now, today, I’m not. But I’m already very good!” Hadjar accepts that there is more to come. “On the technical side, I need to improve a lot,” he says. “There’s a lot going on to understand and make the difference. It’s not easy though. If you want to do the work, it’s really hard. But that’s what I’m here for.” How far that work might take him is open to question. Certainly, the second seat at Red Bull, always in a state of flux, is a destination he’s quietly got his eye on. “Honestly, now that it seems like it’s really hard to be next to Max, it makes me want to go even more,” Hadjar admits. “That’s still the main target. I want to believe I can do it. I always want more. I don’t really care about points. I just want to win. Maybe I can’t have that at the moment, so every time I hit the track, I want to be … spectacular!” “THE FIRST TIME I JUMPED INTO A KART, I THINK MY DAD SAW SOMETHING SPECIAL.” Rolling into Miami, Hadjar sits 14th in driver standings, with five points in the first five races of the season. F1 > p. 15
