Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon, Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson, or Yuki Tsunoda – these are the names of drivers who, in past seasons, drove for the Red Bull team alongside the phenomenal Max Verstappen. The rules within the team were clear: either you drive as well as Max, or we end our cooperation. In practice, however, this means more than just sporting rivalry – it means existing almost in the shadow of one of the best drivers in history. This, in turn, is associated with constant pressure to prove one’s worth, and every failure is not a stage of development, but a signal for replacement. In the case of the aforementioned drivers, it usually ended with the latter, although in relation to Perez, we can speak of a partial breaking of the famous “curse.”
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The fact that Max Verstappen is one of the best drivers in history probably doesn’t need to be reminded to anyone. Suffice it to say that already in 2015, at just 17 years old, he was contracted by the Toro Rosso team and became the youngest driver to participate in a Formula 1 race. A year later, after driving just four races, he was moved to Red Bull, where he won his first race in their car (Spanish GP). To this, we can add four Drivers’ World Championship titles, 71 victories, and 48 Pole Positions. Additionally, his unique driving style, incredible determination, and resistance to changing weather conditions mean that expectations for the second driver soar. For some, these cease to be a realistic point of reference and begin to be a source of permanent pressure, comparisons, and the creation of expectations that are impossible to meet.
Gasly and Albon found their footing in other teams after losing their Red Bull seats
Pierre Gasly was the first to be chosen as Max’s teammate in 2019 (after Daniel Ricciardo’s sensational departure). However, he only drove 12 races, because despite the team’s good form, his results were far below expectations. He finished highest in fourth position at the British GP, and by mid-season, he had accumulated 63 points, compared to Verstappen’s 181. During the summer break, the team announced the termination of cooperation with the driver and his “demotion” back to Toro Rosso. This was a huge blow for the Frenchman. It meant that he had to prove his worth again and that his earlier promotion to Red Bull was not a fluke. The effects of getting rid of the pressure and the need for constant proving came almost immediately. Already in his first race for the still weaker Toro Rosso, he scored points, and less than a year later, he won the first race of his career. Later, he moved to the Alpine team and became its leader.
In his place, Alex Albon stepped in later in 2019, finishing the season, regularly scoring points and most often placing in positions 4, 5, and 6. This led the team to extend the Thai driver’s contract for 2020. Although in the pandemic season he stood on the podium twice (in third place) and only failed to score points in four races, it was not enough to satisfy Red Bull, who signed a contract with Sergio Perez, known for his aggressive driving. Thus, Albon was “demoted” to the role of Red Bull’s reserve driver. Although he hoped to return in 2022, Perez’s good performances meant that he ultimately signed a contract with the Williams team. And so the story repeated itself – despite solid results, Albon operated in Verstappen’s shadow, and the lack of spectacular results proved more important than consistency.
Sergio Perez lasted the longest as the second driver
Sergio Perez can be considered the driver who broke the famous “Red Bull second driver curse.” It was he who for a moment seemed to be the ideal partner – accepting his role and supporting Verstappen. Additionally, his results also allowed him to keep his “seat” until the end of 2024 – he scored points in almost every race, stood on the podium many times, and also won, without overshadowing Max and his momentum at the time. The most famous race in the new history of F1 can be recalled here – Abu Dhabi 2021 – when Perez “held up” Lewis Hamilton, helping Verstappen close the gap, which among other things contributed to the Dutchman winning the title. In 2022, he finished third in the drivers’ standings, but the following year was a real breakthrough for the Austrian team. They won 21 out of 22 races and secured the Constructors’ World Championship title six rounds before the end of the season. However, 2024 arrived and a real collapse in Perez’s form. He only stood on the podium four times, and that was in the first five races. Then he started placing at the back or outside the top ten, and also failed to finish four races. This marked the end of a beautiful and fruitful adventure.
Two drivers burned out in 2025
From 2025, Red Bull opted for youth, hoping that a breath of fresh air would guarantee them championships again. Paradoxically, however, this season proved to be the most “destructive” for the second drivers. Liam Lawson drove only two races, failing to finish one and ending the other in twelfth place. He was immediately replaced by Yuki Tsunoda, who, like Max, was known for his aggressive and daring driving. And here, however, the “curse” did its job, as the Japanese driver only scored points in seven races. The situation was desperate, but Red Bull did not decide on drastic changes. In December, however, they officially announced that Isack Hadjar would sit alongside Verstappen from the next season. The young Frenchman, who began his F1 adventure in 2025 and who, like his predecessors, was known for his reckless driving. At this stage, however, the concept of the “Red Bull second driver curse” became so popular in the media that a significant majority of internet users wrote off Hadjar’s career. Most saw that since Verstappen’s phenomenal form emerged, only Perez had been able to keep his driver’s seat for more than two seasons. Memes increasingly appeared in the media, featuring successive drivers “destroyed” by the restrictive system prevailing in the Austrian team.
A difficult challenge for Isack Hadjar
Although only four races of the 2026 season are behind us, the media narrative is slowly beginning to change, and some internet users initially joked that the “second driver’s curse” had passed to Max Verstappen! Already in the first weekend in Australia, due to a car error, the Dutchman was eliminated from qualifying in Q1 and started the race from twentieth position. Hadjar, on the other hand, performed phenomenally, finishing qualifying in third place. However, the perfect bubble burst faster than anyone could have expected, as the Frenchman retired from the Australian Grand Prix on the tenth lap, again due to technical problems. And when everyone thought they had counted their chickens too soon, subsequent weekends showed that the Frenchman’s career at Red Bull was not yet definitively over. In China, the roles were reversed, and Isack finished the race, while the Dutchman had to retire to the garage before the end. Before the Suzuka race, the team made changes to the car, which, however, had the opposite effect to what was expected. Max Verstappen finished the race in a disappointing eighth place, and Hadjar – in twelfth. However, we cannot speak of disappointment only from Isack’s side, because currently the entire team is facing huge problems. The situation changed significantly to the Frenchman’s disadvantage at the Miami GP. Red Bull introduced a lot of changes to its car there, and Max Verstappen used them to start fighting for top positions. Hadjar lagged far behind him, and in the race, he crashed into the barrier due to his own fault.
For now, we cannot draw hasty conclusions, because the season has only just begun. The question is not whether Isack Hadjar is good enough, but whether anyone in this role has a real chance of success. However, history is merciless in the case of this team and shows that in Red Bull, talent is sometimes not enough – the ability to survive in the shadow of one of the most dominant drivers in history is equally important.
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The author of the article is Aleksandra Binkowska, you can find her on TikTok – link.
