Red Bull Racing Hit Pause: Isack Hadjar’s Crash Cuts F1 Testing Short

Last Updated:January 28, 2026, 21:52 IST

Red Bull’s Barcelona test was shaping up nicely. Then the rain came, the track turned nasty, and reality bit hard.

Red Bull Racing at the Barcelona Shakedown (F1 Media)

New Red Bull CEO and team principal Laurent Mekies was left juggling optimism and damage control after rookie Isack Hadjar crashed the RB22 late on day two of pre-season running at the Circuit de Catalunya.

The crash came at the final corner, with the 21-year-old Frenchman spinning backwards into the barriers during a closed-door session.

The incident, caused by treacherous wet conditions following morning rain, forced Red Bull to shut down running on Wednesday as engineers assess the damage.

“It was a very tricky condition this afternoon, so very unfortunate that it finished that way,” Mekies told F1.

“But it’s part of the game. Very tricky, a lot of work to do on many aspects, and these sorts of things can happen.”

Hadjar’s crash brought an abrupt end to what Mekies described as a largely encouraging start for the Frenchman, promoted from Racing Bulls this season.

“These difficulties came after a very, very positive day yesterday in terms of the number of laps Isack could complete in the car, and in terms of his learning, development and feedback to the engineers,” he said.

Red Bull have already used two of their three allocated testing days in Barcelona, leaving just one day on the table.

Hadjar himself had called Monday’s dry running “pretty productive,” making the timing of the setback all the more frustrating.

“We only have one day left, so we need to make sure we play that card carefully,” he admitted. “The priority right now is to assess the damage on the car and see what opportunities that gives us in terms of running over the next days.”

Only Red Bull and Ferrari managed to run on Tuesday due to the weather, with Lewis Hamilton logging heavy mileage for Ferrari in the wet. McLaren, meanwhile, delayed their debut entirely.

(with inputs from agencies)

Read More