Mekies credited with lifting Red Bull's second seat curse as Hadjar thrives in 2026

Laurent Mekies has been credited with dismantling Red Bull’s long-standing second seat problem, with F1 broadcaster Will Buxton arguing that the team principal’s shift toward a more supportive team culture — rather than the pressure-driven approach of previous years — is the key reason rookie Isack Hadjar is thriving in 2026.

Red Bull’s difficulties in finding a stable partner for four-time world champion Max Verstappen have been well documented. Sergio Perez, now racing for Cadillac, was dropped ahead of the 2025 season. His replacement, Liam Lawson, lasted just two race weekends before being demoted back to Racing Bulls. Yuki Tsunoda then occupied the seat for the remainder of 2025, before Hadjar was promoted from Racing Bulls for the 2026 campaign.

Speaking on the Up To Speed podcast, Buxton pointed to a fundamental change in how Red Bull manages its drivers under Mekies, contrasting it sharply with the era of Christian Horner and Dr Helmut Marko.

“The fact that maybe the curse is being removed, not necessarily through what Isack’s doing, but through what Laurent is doing and his culture at the team,” Buxton said. “Whereas, before under Horner, under Dr Helmut Marko and the previous generation, it was very much the consideration that diamonds are forged under pressure.”

Buxton suggested that removing that pressure — and creating what he described as a “happy and safe space” — gave Hadjar the freedom to perform at his best. “Perhaps that is allowing Isack to then extract the maximum from himself,” he added. “So perhaps all of these things coming together is what’s creating the feeling that this curse, if there ever was a curse, has been lifted.”

Hadjar’s 2026 season has not been without setbacks. A wrist injury sustained during the summer break sidelined him for a period, but he returned at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and finished third — a result that will have done little to dampen the growing optimism around his tenure at the team.

Whether Mekies’ cultural reset proves durable over a full season alongside Verstappen remains to be seen, but the early evidence suggests Red Bull’s second seat may finally have found some stability.