Lawson to partner Verstappen again at Monza as Hadjar's wrist injury rules him out

Isack Hadjar has been ruled out of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza, forcing Red Bull to retain the same driver line-up it fielded at the Dutch Grand Prix. Liam Lawson will again partner Max Verstappen in the Red Bull RB22, while Yuki Tsunoda returns to the Racing Bulls VCARB 03 alongside rookie Arvid Lindblad.

Hadjar fractured his wrist during a boxing session in the Formula 1 summer break, sidelining the 22-year-old Frenchman for the Zandvoort round on 21-23 August. Red Bull had hoped he would be fit in time for Monza but confirmed it would not rush his return.

“Liam will drive alongside Max at the Italian GP in Monza, while Isack continues to make encouraging progress,” a Red Bull statement read. “The team is closely monitoring his rehabilitation and will take no unnecessary risks with his return to competition and wishes him a speedy recovery.”

Both Lawson and Tsunoda acquitted themselves well in their stand-in roles in the Netherlands. Lawson qualified eighth and finished seventh in the Red Bull, while Tsunoda narrowly missed the points in 11th, with both drivers matching their respective team-mates closely over a single lap.

In a separate development, Red Bull reserve driver Ayumu Iwasa will replace Verstappen for the opening practice session at Monza, fulfilling one of the team’s four mandated rookie outings for the 2025 season.