Hadjar to miss third consecutive F1 race in Madrid: Tsunoda remains overlooked, Lawson gets golden chance

On Monday evening, Red Bull confirmed that Isack Hadjar would miss a third consecutive race, the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid. The Frenchman's wrist injury has not healed sufficiently, so Liam Lawson will take over the RB22 alongside Max Verstappen. Yuki Tsunoda remains at Racing Bulls for another round. The official statement says Hadjar is not yet ready to return to the cockpit, though his recovery is described as positive. He will be in Madrid to support the team. For a top squad, three missed races create a real gap in operational memory, especially at the start of the 2026 regulation cycle. Every team must now adapt to new power units and chassis regulations. The RB22 is no longer a car with a full year of baseline data; it needs continuous driver feedback. Losing Hadjar for three races does not only cost points, it disrupts car development. Liam Lawson may have experience, but he lacks the accumulated mileage and setup continuity on the RB22. From a data analyst's point of view, Red Bull has just lost one of its most important feedback channels at the worst possible moment. Lawson knows this three-race window is both a golden opportunity and a trap. He previously spent a short time at Red Bull before being demoted. Now he is being asked to partner Max Verstappen, the toughest benchmark in F1. Pressure will come not only from raw speed but from constant comparison. If Lawson performs, he could turn this substitute role into a permanent seat. If he fails, the 2026 storyline may repeat itself in an even harsher form. The most quietly significant figure in this announcement is Tsunoda. Once again, he stays at Racing Bulls. The phrase gets another race with Racing Bulls sounds almost like a repetitive loop in Red Bull's internal messaging. Tsunoda has shown consistency and pace for years, yet whenever Red Bull needed a replacement, they turned to Lawson. If Red Bull really had to choose between the two drivers for the main seat, this decision adds more evidence that Tsunoda may never be promoted. Each time this happens, his value on the driver market is called into question. Another critical detail is missing: who will fill Hadjar's seat at Racing Bulls while Lawson is called up? The announcement does not name anyone. A Red Bull junior driver would normally get the chance, but the silence suggests the decision may not have been finalized. In a season where Racing Bulls wants to fight in the midfield, lacking a reliable second driver could cost them valuable constructors' points. Tsunoda would be left to carry the team, leaving him with little room to showcase his own development. Many fans assume Red Bull chose Lawson because he is faster than Tsunoda. But the story may not be so simple. Lawson possesses something a second driver at Red Bull desperately needs: the ability to accept a supporting role and cope with constant comparison to Verstappen. Tsunoda has shown emotional fragility in several moments, and that may be enough for Red Bull to hesitate. If we look from that angle, this decision is not necessarily about speed; it is about internal hierarchy and psychological fit. This blind spot is often ignored in public debates about talent. When Hadjar returns, the big question will not be whether he keeps his seat. What matters more is how much Red Bull's selection criteria have already shifted. Lawson has three races to reshape his future. Tsunoda, again, must prove his worth in a place where he has fewer and fewer paths forward. Hadjar, sitting on the sidelines, has probably learned that in F1, certainty only exists until the red lights go out. I still remember my own saying: every personnel decision starts with a shaky line drawn on a PowerPoint slide. With Red Bull, that line may have been redrawn many times before the public finally sees the finished map.