Red Bull make Isack Hadjar declaration as injury recovery continues

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has insisted the squad will only opt to bring Isack Hadjar back to his race seat when it is comfortable that his return is risk-free.

Hadjar suffered a wrist injury during the summer break, ruling himself out of the following three rounds.

In his absence, Liam Lawson has stepped in while Yuki Tsunoda replaced the New Zealander at Racing Bulls.

With the upcoming weekend being an off-weekend for F1, it offers Hadjar some extra time to recover in the hope of getting back behind the wheel in Baku.

But while the delay goes on, Mekies asserted nothing is amiss with the timeline for his return.

“There is nothing wrong with Isack's recovery,” Mekies told media including RacingNews365.

“I think we have learned that it's fundamentally a normal time for the sort of injuries he has.

“So we will continue with the same approach than what we had.

“We will evaluate the situation in a week's time. We have a bit more than a full week to evaluate the situation, to see how he feels.”

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Hadjar set for simulator sessions ahead of final call

Hadjar had been enjoying a positive first season inside the Red Bull team this year, and was a frequent finisher inside the top six.

While he is no doubt itching for the chance to race once again, Mekies proclaimed that the team will not risk aggravating the injury by rushing him back.

“Then [we plan] to put him on the simulator, to expose him to real-life constraints,” he said.

“If he feels close to 100%, we go for it. If he feels the recovery is not completed, we will stick to our approach to put his recovery first. 

“What we don't want to do is, by having an early return, compromise his long-term capacity to come back to 100 per cent.”