Portugal Colonial - Lawson replaces injured Hadjar for Red Bull at Dutch GP

The event at Zandvoort marks F1's return from the summer break and begins with practice and sprint qualifying on Friday.

"Hadjar has sustained a wrist injury during summer shutdown that will prevent him from racing at the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix," Red Bull said in a statement.

"We will be welcoming back Lawson who will replace him.

"The team wishes Isack a speedy recovery and thanks Liam for stepping in on short notice."

For 24-year-old Lawson it is a return to Red Bull, where he endured a tough two-race stint at the start of the 2025 season before being demoted to Racing Bulls.

In the drivers' world championship standings, Frenchman Hadjar has 68 points, well behind his team-mate, four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

He sits 25 points ahead of Lawson, but the New Zealander has been driving a less competitive car at Racing Bulls.

Hadjar, 21, secured his first F1 podium finish at last year's Dutch Grand Prix, while driving for Racing Bulls. This season, his best result so far was a fourth-place finish in Monaco.

This temporary return to the Red Bull Group's parent team comes for Lawson at the circuit where he made his F1 debut in 2023.

At the time, he stepped in for Daniel Ricciardo at the Alpha Tauri team, which has since become Racing Bulls.

Lawson will be replaced at Racing Bulls this weekend by Japanese driver Yuki Tsunoda –- the man who took his seat at Red Bull last season, due to his poor results in the first two races.

After subsequently handing over his seat at Red Bull to Hadjar for the 2026 season, Tsunoda retained a role as reserve driver for the group.

P.Serra--PC