Mekies hails Hadjar's Brazil third as his best Red Bull drive yet

Isack Hadjar delivered what Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies considers his most impressive performance to date, finishing third at the 2026 São Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos to help the Milton Keynes squad secure a double podium alongside Max Verstappen’s remarkable charge from 21st to second.

Starting fifth, Hadjar claimed his third podium of the 2026 season — but it was the manner of the drive, rather than the result alone, that drew the highest praise from his team boss.

“I think ultimately if you ask me right now, I think it’s the best race he has done with us,” Mekies told reporters after the race. “In terms of pure pace, and that’s what we look at — pure pace on the dry, on the inters, super difficult conditions, in how clever he has been racing.”

Hadjar spent a significant portion of the race matching or exceeding Verstappen’s pace on the same tyre strategy, underlining his ability to compete at the very front of the grid in treacherous, rapidly changing conditions.

The performance adds further weight to Red Bull’s decision to confirm Hadjar for the 2027 season. Mekies indicated that the team had specifically identified his consistent upward trajectory as the key factor in securing his future.

“He has done a lot of very strong racing this year as you know… but I think he has raised the bar another time,” Mekies said. “That’s what we said we were most impressed by when we took the decision to confirm him for ‘27 — the way he has been keeping raising the bar, and we were simply hoping to provide the environment for him to keep doing that.”

One of the more contentious moments of the race came on lap 38, when Hadjar — running second at the time — was instructed via team radio to allow Verstappen through as the Dutchman continued his recovery drive through the field. Hadjar asked over the radio whether positions would be swapped back if Verstappen could not catch race leader Lando Norris. Mekies addressed the exchange directly after the race, confirming that a position reversal had been a genuine option, though the chaotic nature of the closing stages ultimately shaped how events unfolded.