The glaring Red Bull question as ‘early whispers’ suggest ‘two new drivers’

Red Bull could make a double driver change at Racing Bulls next season, with Isack Hadjar off to Red Bull and Liam Lawson dropped in favour of Arvid Lindblad and potentially Alex Dunne.

Hadjar, though, could hold the key to Red Bull’s future driver moments.

Only Max Verstappen might retain his race seat?

Having burned through Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson and now Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull has a second driver crisis- or at least the very least a conundrum – to solve at Red Bull.

As things stand, the team is hoping Racing Bulls’ sensation Hadjar will be the solution.

The rookie is being widely tipped to step up to Red Bull next season as Max Verstappen’s seventh teammate, and hopefully the first who can go wheel-to-wheel against the four-time World Champion since Daniel Ricciardo in 2018.

Ricciardo was on a par with Verstappen but after his departure, Red Bull struggled to find a driver who could match the Dutchman’s pace.

While it has been suggested time and again, and by Red Bull race winner Perez, that the RB cars are designed to suit Verstappen’s on-the-nose driving style, Red Bull insists it is only trying to develop the fastest car possible without a single driver in mind.

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But as Verstappen racks up the wins, three this season while his teammate Tsunoda hasn’t finished higher than P6, Red Bull’s second seat has become known as the poisoned chalice.

One that Hadjar is expected to take on.

Nearing the end of his debut campaign with Racing Bulls, Red Bull’s ‘junior team’, Hadjar has been a revelation as he’s scored 39 points, including a P3 finish at the Dutch Grand Prix.

Although Racing Bulls is on paper the team that Red Bull can use to blood the next generation of Red Bull drivers, pundits have urged Hadjar to run rather than take on the challenge that is Verstappen.

Next year though, could be a very different story with Formula 1 introducing all-new cars and engines that may not only level the playing field of the grid, but also the intra-team battles.

It’s a moment for Red Bull and its sister team Racing Bulls to embrace as they seek the “next Max Verstappen”.

But if it is not Hadjar, Red Bull’s sixth alternate since Ricciardo’s departure, triple W Series winner Jamie Chadwick says the team then has to take a very hard look at itself.

Agreeing with Sky Sports The F1 Show podcast host Simon Lazenby that Racing Bulls will have two new drivers next season, Chadwick said it was all in the search for the next Verstappen.

And that starts with Racing Bulls and its line-up with predictions Hadjar will step up and Lawson will go to make way for new drivers.

“I think they might, and if they do I think it’s very obvious that it’s because they are constantly looking to try and find the next Max Verstappen,” Chadwick said.

“They don’t want to find the next number two drivers, or just a driver that can be solid across the board.

“They want to find drivers that are the next superstars in Formula 1.

“I think if they, in my opinion, just keep the same line-up as they’ve got, then they know that those two drivers aren’t going to be Red Bull Racing drivers.

“They aren’t going to be drivers who are ever going to ever… they accept they aren’t going to be Max Verstappen but ever be within a tenth or so of Max, which is what they really need.

“Are they better off just trying something new, putting someone new in, a young driver, fresh driver, they might find like they have with Isack Hadjar in the Racing Bulls.

“The thing we don’t know is we know what Isack Hadjar is like in the Racing Bulls, how is he going to fare in the Red Bull?

“If he comes in and he is also off the pace, like we’ve seen the last sort of three or so driver, every driver that’s gone up against Max recently, then there’s the fundamental issue there.

“But if he comes in and he’s right where they need him to be, then yeah, they constantly need to be trying to find these young drivers to put in the Racing Bulls, develop them up to ultimately go into the Red Bull Racing seat.”

Formula 2 drivers Lindblad and Dunne have been linked to Racing Bulls.

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