The Isack Hadjar Red Bull return is confirmed for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, which runs from 24 to 26 September. Hadjar missed three rounds of the season, at Zandvoort, Monza and Madrid, after injuring his wrist during a boxing session away from the track. Red Bull have confirmed he has made a full recovery and is fit to race.
He steps straight back into the senior seat this weekend. That ends a three race absence that forced the team to lean on reserve driver Liam Lawson, who covered the gap while Hadjar recovered and kept the car competitive in his absence.
Isack Hadjar Baku Return Confirmed Following Wrist Recovery
Hadjar’s injury came away from racing entirely. A boxing session left him with a wrist problem serious enough to rule him out of three consecutive weekends, a run that covered the Dutch, Italian and Spanish rounds of the calendar. Red Bull moved quickly to bring in Lawson so the car did not sit idle while their driver recovered.
Now the team says the issue has cleared up in full. Hadjar has been passed fit and will take his usual place on the grid in Baku, a street circuit he will already know well from his time in junior categories. There is no fitness caveat attached; Red Bull’s language is straightforward, describing him simply as recovered and ready.
For a driver building his first full season in the senior team, missing three rounds through injury is not ideal timing. Even so, the recovery has been managed carefully, and the team has given no indication that Baku will be treated as anything other than a normal race weekend for him.
Red Bull Statement and Lawson’s Replacement Stint
Red Bull put out a statement thanking Lawson for covering the gap, according to the BBC Sport report on Red Bull. The team said: “The team would like to sincerely thank Liam for his professionalism, dedication and hard work over the past three races.” It’s a warm sign off for a driver who took the job at short notice and had little time to prepare.
Lawson’s results held up well given the circumstances. He finished seventh at Zandvoort and sixth in Madrid, showing genuine pace on both weekends. Monza was tougher; he finished 14th there and missed out on points, a reminder of how unforgiving that circuit can be for a driver still adjusting to a car. Red Bull acknowledged the difficulty of the assignment directly, adding: “Stepping in under challenging circumstances, he delivered some impressive performances and made a valuable contribution to the team.”
Drivers’ Standings Impact and Racing Bulls Context
Hadjar’s absence has not knocked him out of the picture in the championship. He sits eighth in the drivers’ standings with 71 points this season, a total built up before the boxing injury interrupted his run. His Isack Hadjar Red Bull return arrives with that position intact, and Baku gives him a chance to add to it straight away rather than starting from scratch.
Racing Bulls remain the wider context here too. The junior squad has had a strong run of form lately, something we touched on in our Racing Bulls qualifying pace analysis. Lawson’s temporary promotion always sat alongside that story, with Red Bull keeping both cars competitive while one seat was covered by a driver already familiar with the junior team’s set up.
Grand Prix Schedule and Lawson’s Immediate Transition
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend runs from 24 to 26 September in Baku, and Hadjar is expected to take part in every session from practice onward. Red Bull have described him simply as fit to race, with no restrictions mentioned around his workload or track time over the weekend.
Lawson, meanwhile, moves straight back to Racing Bulls, the team he raced for before stepping up to cover Hadjar’s absence. We looked at his form in that seat in our piece on Lawson’s recent performances at Racing Bulls, and that is where his focus now returns for the remainder of the season. The switch back happens with no gap between assignments, so he heads to Baku already looking ahead to his next outing in junior team colours.
