Ralf Schumacher makes ‘exciting’ bet on who will be Max Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate in 2026

Former Formula 1 driver Ralf Schumacher has been discussing the future of Red Bull Racing’s driver line-up.

Red Bull are suddenly wondering whether or not Max Verstappen could win the drivers’ championship this season.

When Verstappen finished ninth at the Hungarian Grand Prix, it looked like their season was over.

However, back-to-back wins in Italy and Azerbaijan have given Laurent Mekies hope that he could be about to oversee Verstappen’s fifth championship win.

A more long-term issue that Mekies has to solve alongside Helmut Marko is who will be Verstappen’s teammate next year.

Yuki Tsunoda recorded his best finish since joining Red Bull at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, but he was still one position behind Liam Lawson.

Tsunoda is still under pressure, and Ralf Schumacher has suggested which driver he believes will be alongside Verstappen in 2026.

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Ralf Schumacher would ‘bet’ on Isack Hadjar being Max Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate in 2026

Schumacher was asked on the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast who he thinks will be racing for Red Bull alongside Verstappen next season and replied: “Yes, at the moment I would also bet on Hadjar, but as I said, if the team now thinks that it will somehow work with Tsunoda, then Tsunoda will approach the car and vice versa.

“Mekies, there’s definitely a difference with his human component, and he knows Tsunoda, too.

“You can see that now with the Racing Bulls, what will happen with Lawson if you give the whole thing a bit of time, and the car is easier to drive.

“Accordingly. Yes, I would have said that both [Lawson and Tsunoda] are out until before the next race.

“I suspect that if you give the young guys a chance, it’s still very difficult because Hadjar can go over.

“You could say, OK, if you go to war with McLaren’s [Alex] Dunne and Lindblad, then yes, that would certainly be an option.

“But, now, of course, the expectations of Racing Bulls have also become higher with the results this year.

“Then it would of course be a bit unfair to say we don’t have any drivers with experience anymore.

“So, it will be exciting to see what Red Bull decides. I think if everything continues as it is, they have a pretty good pool of drivers.

“We’ll see, let’s just give it a little time. If it goes wrong again in Singapore, then I think it will be like we thought two races ago.”

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Isack Hadjar coy over F1 future amid Red Bull Racing links

Asked about the prospect of being promoted to Red Bull next season, Isack Hadjar admitted he had an ‘idea’ but didn’t know for sure what was happening.

The French rookie has been seriously impressive this season, with his podium at Zandvoort catching everybody’s attention.

Hadjar finishing 10th in Baku was disappointing for the 20-year-old as the worst-ranked Red Bull driver, but he remains ninth in the drivers’ championship with seven races to go.

The last time a Racing Bulls, or equivalent driver, finished that high in the standings was in 2021 when Pierre Gasly scored 110 points.

Hadjar is the frontrunner to race for Red Bull alongside Verstappen next year, while Gasly had already been and gone by that point in his career.

His consistency has stood out this season, with only Gabriel Bortoleto reaching the same levels regularly, albeit in a slower car.

That will appeal to Mekies and Marko, but there are still a handful of races left before Red Bull need to make a decision.