Rosberg details magnitude of Isack Hadjar’s return from wrist injury
Isack Hadjar is in his first season with Red Bull Racing in 2026
Nico Rosberg has explained the complexities of Isack Hadjar’s return to Formula 1 after the Red Bull driver fractured his left wrist during training ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix.
PlanetF1.com learned that Hadjar suffered a wrist injury during the F1 summer break, which Red Bull confirmed would keep him out of the car for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Nico Rosberg explains Isack Hadjar’s wrist injury and F1 return
His absence extended into Monza and Madrid, where Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said the team was listening to what Hadjar had to say about his recovery.
“It was an easy one,” Mekies told Sky Sports as the Frenchman sat out his third successive race weekend.
“He didn’t feel that he was 100 per cent and that’s the only criteria we used – are you 100 per cent?
“And so it was an easy one for there.
“We always said we would prioritise him coming back at 100 per cent.”
“That,” he added, “is the assessment that we have done.”
Mekies and Red Bull are hoping Hadjar will be fit enough for the next race on the calendar, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but will first assess the driver in the simulator.
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix, though, comes just over a month after Hadjar fractured his wrist, based on information released by the team.
Whether he will be ready to race remains to be seen.
2016 world champion Rosberg explained why it is taking the Frenchman longer to get back in the car compared with Lance Stroll, who fractured his right wrist in a cycling crash in 2023 but was back in the car two weeks later.
Stroll went on to miss the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix as he underwent a further unspecified procedure on his wrist.
“It’s really horrible to drive with a wrist injury,” Rosberg told Sky Sports.
“We’ve seen Lance Stroll do that a few years ago, incredibly, and because of the G-forces and everything, it’s so extreme.
“And especially, what you don’t really think about is when you’re braking, you fly forwards in the seat belts, and you have to push against the steering wheel because otherwise your body just flies forwards, and you wouldn’t want to hang in the seat belt like that.
“So you’re pushing very hard against the steering wheel, which, if your wrist is broken, you can’t do that; you’ll be in too much pain.”
Although Hadjar has yet to publicly comment on his recovery, Mekies says it is going well.
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“There is nothing wrong with Isack’s recovery,” Mekies told PlanetF1.com and other accredited media.
“I think we have learned that it’s fundamentally a normal time for the sort of injuries he has, so we will continue with the same approach than what we had.
“We will evaluate the situation in a week’s time.
“We have a bit more than a full week to evaluate the situations, to see how he feels, and then to put him on the simulator, to expose him to real-life constraints.
“If he feels close to 100 per cent, we go for it.
“If he feels the recovery is not completed, we will stick on our approach to put his recovery first.
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