Isack Hadjar addresses Max Verstappen Red Bull battle after early surprise

Isack Hadjar has admitted he is performing closer to Max Verstappen than anticipated following a solid start to his Red Bull career, despite the team's early-season struggles with the RB22.

The 21-year-old Frenchman has scored four points from the opening two races, finishing eighth in China after a retirement in Australia. 

Verstappen, meanwhile, has eight points to his name after claiming sixth in Melbourne before retiring from the Chinese Grand Prix with an ERS coolant failure.

Asked if he is closer than he was expecting to Verstappen, Hadjar told the media, including RacingNews365: "I'm definitely closer than I expected. Yeah, that's it."

He has shown encouraging pace alongside the four-time world champion, with the average qualifying gap standing at 0.294 seconds across the opening rounds. 

Verstappen has out-qualified Hadjar two-one, but the margin has been tighter than many predicted given the Dutchman's reputation of destroying whoever is alongside him at Red Bull.

"I think it makes sense, the gap I have to Max over the last couple of weekends," added Hadjar. "It's pretty much what I wanted; not what I expected, but what I wanted.

"But then let's see how the season goes. When the car gets upgrades, gets better, and gets easier to drive, let's see how it goes.

"But I don't see any reason why it would change, because it's the same car. I drive it, he drives it, and that's how it is."