MILTON KEYNES, England (AP) — Liam Lawson will remain Max Verstappen's Formula 1 teammate at Red Bull for the Italian Grand Prix after Isack Hadjar failed to recover in time from his wrist injury, the team confirmed Wednesday.
Hadjar had said he was hopeful of returning for Sunday's race but will now miss a second event with injury.
Lawson keeps Hadjar's spot at Red Bull and Yuki Tsunoda gets a second race with Racing Bulls in Lawson's usual seat.
“Liam will drive alongside Max at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, while Isack continues to make encouraging progress following the wrist injury sustained during the summer break,” Red Bull said on social media.
“The team is closely monitoring his rehabilitation and will take no unnecessary risks with his return to competition and wishes him a speedy recovery.”
There was no word on whether a return for next week’s Spanish Grand Prix is possible.
Hadjar already spent last month's Dutch Grand Prix on the sidelines with a wrist brace after injuring himself days before, reportedly during a boxing workout.
Lawson moved up from Racing Bulls for the race and placed a solid seventh, while Tsunoda was 11th on his F1 return, his first race since he was dropped by Red Bull in December.
In a Red Bull team video from the Dutch Grand Prix, Hadjar said it was frustrating to be a spectator.
“It’s my first injury ever in my whole existence, career, whatever. It’s weird to be on the bench and I’m not happy about it,” Hadjar said. “It’s not swollen, which is a good sign. It’s healing fast. Every day I have a bit more mobility and I’m hopeful for Monza.”
Lawson is having his strongest season in F1 and is ninth in the standings, one place behind Hadjar, with almost double the points of Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad. That's helped bring about the New Zealander's return to Red Bull, where he was dropped after just two races in 2025.
___
