Red Bull hopeful sends warning to F1 establishment

Isack Hadjar believes the generation of drivers breaking through to F1 is proving a lack of experience is not the drawback it once was.

The F2 driver, who currently sits second in the championship standings behind F1-bound Gabriel Bortoleto, is also reserve driver for Red Bull and RB following Liam Lawson's elevation to a race seat.

The Frenchman has his eye on a full-time F1 drive of his own, and feels the performances of Oliver Bearman and Franco Colapinto upon stepping up from F2 have underlined the quality within the current support paddock.

"This shows that our generation is good," Hadjar told Motorsport.com.

"For a while we thought that experience was the most important thing, and you couldn't get in a car and beat the guy who has ten years of experience in F1, but actually you can. If you're fast, you're fast.

So they've done a good job for us, showing what the F2 grid can produce in F1, and I think what Franco and Ollie have done is great."

'I can count the number of laps I've done in an F1 car'

The belief there is no substitute for experience in F1 is borne from a time when drivers did not have the tools at their disposal that the current crop of young drivers enjoy.

That, coupled with extensive testing programmes similar to the one Mercedes has devised for Kimi Antonelli, means those graduating to F1 are better prepared than ever.

However, Hadjar does concede there is a difference between those with adequate F1 running and those still awaiting their opportunity.

"There's a lack of experience and a complete lack of experience in an F1 car, the 20-year-old added.

"I think if I were to step into an F1 car straight away it would be a lot harder than Ollie or Liam. As I said, I think I can count the number of laps I've done in an F1 car."

"But still, when you talk about [the] simulator, I think it's the best tool. It's so impressive, apart from the g-force that you can't really feel, and that's the main difference.

"The model and how close it is to reality is quite surprising. Red Bull has a very good simulator and the more time you spend on it, the easier it is to adapt to reality."