Max Verstappen’s new team-mate at Red Bull Racing, Isack Hadjar, has openly acknowledged feeling somewhat frustrated and, in his own words, “annoyed” by the intense attention he’s already receiving ahead of his debut season alongside one of Formula 1’s biggest stars. As Hadjar prepares to take on the immense challenge of racing beside Verstappen in 2026, he’s candid about the pressures and scrutiny that come with stepping into perhaps the most high-profile seat on the grid.
At just 20 years old, Hadjar has quickly become one of the most talked-about young drivers in the sport. His rapid rise through Red Bull’s junior ranks and impressive performances during the 2025 season have made him a natural candidate to partner Verstappen when the new campaign begins. However, while early success naturally brings praise and optimism, it also brings something less pleasant: constant media attention, fan speculation, and public expectation. For a young man entering the toughest year of his career, that spotlight is already starting to wear on him.
During a media session at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend, reporters asked Hadjar how he’s handling the spotlight now that his promotion to Red Bull’s senior team is official. Rather than offer polished, PR-centered responses, Hadjar was surprisingly honest about how he felt. When directly asked whether the attention bothered him, he didn’t dance around the question — instead, he replied plainly that it was annoying.
His comment may seem simple, but it underscores a key reality for anyone joining the very top tier of Formula 1: the jump from being a promising young driver to one competing for podiums and world titles brings with it a sudden and often overwhelming shift in public focus. For Hadjar, who has spent the past season more quietly proving his talent, the shift has already begun, and he’s honest about the fact that it isn’t always enjoyable.
To cope, he even joked that he might try to “disappear” from view — perhaps by wearing a mask — though he delivered the comment with a laugh. That sense of humor, combined with honest self-reflection, suggests that Hadjar doesn’t simply want to be swept up in hype. Instead, he’s trying to stay grounded and focus on what matters most to him: performing at his best behind the wheel.
Hadjar’s rise through the Red Bull driver development pipeline has been nothing short of remarkable. During the 2025 season, he consistently showed maturity and aggression beyond his years, clinching a breakthrough podium at Zandvoort and repeatedly outpacing other Red Bull-affiliated drivers such as Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda. Those results made his promotion seem almost inevitable — but they also thrust him into a spotlight far brighter than anything he had previously experienced.
His promotion comes at a time when Red Bull is undergoing a period of significant change. The team has seen a high turnover of drivers over the past few seasons, with several high-profile names coming and going after failing to consistently match performance expectations alongside Verstappen. The long list includes drivers like Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Sergio Pérez, Liam Lawson, and Yuki Tsunoda — all of whom struggled to cement their place as Verstappen’s teammate despite dramatic talent and potential. This history underlines just how intense and unforgiving the job can be.
Verstappen himself has set extremely high standards at Red Bull. He’s widely acknowledged as the dominant force in modern F1, a driver who not only wins consistently but often does so with a level of performance that makes even his own teammates’ achievements seem modest by comparison. That has earned him a reputation as a “team-mate killer,” a term applied to drivers who set such a high benchmark that few others are able to measure up. The result has been a revolving door of teammates who either struggle in his shadow or are moved on before they can fully adapt.
For Hadjar, that legacy is part of the context he must now navigate. Being partnered with Verstappen is a rare opportunity — one that could springboard him into the upper echelons of the sport — but it also brings pressure that few young drivers ever face so early in their careers. Alongside preparing for life on and off the track, he must manage expectations, both his own and those of fans and pundits alike. The fact that he already finds all this annoying shows just how human and relatable he is amidst the glamour and spectacle of Formula 1.
Yet his attitude may also prove to be an asset. Rather than being daunted by the attention, he’s willing to acknowledge the less glamorous aspects of life as a top-tier driver. That suggests a level of self-awareness that could help him stay focused on the racing itself rather than getting distracted by the noise around him. In an environment where hype and speculation can easily overshadow performance, this perspective could serve him well.
Looking ahead, expectations for Hadjar will be sky-high. Red Bull rarely promotes young talent without reason, and his rapid elevation to a leading team confirms just how highly the organisation regards his potential. But the real measure of his success won’t be how loudly the world talks about him — it will be how well he adapts to life as Verstappen’s teammate, how he handles pressure, and how consistently he can perform when the lights go green.
Whether Hadjar’s candid admission of annoyance is a fleeting emotional response or an early indication of his approach to fame and expectation, only time will tell. But what’s clear is that he’s not afraid to speak honestly about the challenges ahead — even if that honesty causes a few raised eyebrows. At a moment when many young drivers would offer polished, media-trained answers, his refreshingly real perspective highlights a maturity that may help him thrive in one of the toughest roles in Formula 1.
In the end, Formula 1 isn’t just about lap times and championships — it’s also about managing pressure, expectations, and the intense spotlight that comes with success. For Isack Hadjar, that journey is just beginning, and his admission of annoyance shows that even the brightest careers start with very human feelings and very real emotional responses.
