Marco Rossi · F1 Correspondent
The driver shuffle from Zandvoort continues: Isack Hadjar's hand injury is healing slower than hoped, so Lawson and Tsunoda remain in the wrong cockpits for Monza as well.
Liam Lawson will again pilot Red Bull Racing's car at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza because Isack Hadjar continues to recover from the hand injury that sidelined him before the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort. Racing Bulls meanwhile keeps Yuki Tsunoda in its cockpit, having already run the swap at Zandvoort and now heading into his second consecutive race weekend. For Monza, this represents not a new driver change but the continuation of a solution Red Bull has been running for two weekends.
An Injury That Keeps Lingering
Hadjar's absence is no longer a fresh issue but an ongoing one. The hand injury from the summer break that already kept him out of the Zandvoort cockpit continues to prevent his return two weeks later. For Red Bull, this means another race weekend without their actual Racing Bulls designated driver, and on a track where long straights and few corners leave little room for error.
The fallout from Hadjar's continued absence affects two teams simultaneously. Lawson stays with Red Bull Racing, where he has been since Zandvoort, while the seat he fills at Racing Bulls remains with Tsunoda. What began two weekends ago as a short-term fix has evolved into a longer-term stopgap measure, one whose end date depends entirely on Hadjar's recovery.
Tsunoda's Second Consecutive Weekend
For Tsunoda, Monza is not really a return but rather the continuation of a run that began in Zandvoort. The Japanese driver made his racing comeback there after months as a test and reserve driver, and has remained uninterrupted in the Racing Bulls cockpit since, a continuity that should work in his favor at Monza.
For Racing Bulls, this very continuity likely represents the real advantage. Unlike two weeks ago, when Tsunoda climbed into the car after a long absence without current race pace, he now knows the car from actual race experience, which should give the team more reliability on a demanding circuit like Monza than bringing in yet another unfamiliar driver.
What's at Stake
For Lawson, meanwhile, the continued opportunity with Red Bull Racing is one he could hardly have hoped for, though the circumstances are unfortunate. Every additional stint in a top team is a chance to prove himself for the future, even if the reasons for his assignment offer little help. Monza, with its high-speed demands, will likely come down less to tire management and more to mental toughness under pressure.
How long this arrangement lasts depends entirely on how quickly Hadjar regains fitness. After Zandvoort, Monza is already the second race weekend where Lawson and Tsunoda occupy cockpits outside their actual teams, while Red Bull and Racing Bulls refuse to lose ground in the constructors' standings and their actual designated driver watches from the sidelines.
