“It’s a joke” – Isack Hadjar laments a ‘catastrophic’ race in a “terrible” car with “no battery”
Isack Hadjar referred to his Bahrain Grand Prix challenges in Malaysia as a “joke,” having encountered peculiar difficulties with his Red Bull Formula 1 vehicle on Sunday.
Beginning from eighth on the grid due to an engine penalty, Hadjar faced a challenging day right from the start, as he navigated through the gravel on the opening formation lap, which took place on a wet track.
The French driver capitalized on intermediate tyres once the race finally commenced after software issues, overtaking Liam Lawson for fourth place on lap six and holding that position despite pressure from Lewis Hamilton in the latter part of the race.
Hadjar thus moved up to third when George Russell retired on lap 50; however, during the four-lap dash following the last safety car period, he could not fend off the Ferraris and ultimately finished fifth, nearly four seconds behind Hamilton.
“No pace,” the Red Bull racer lamented. “Something was off because… I can't possibly be a second a lap slower now. Even in comparison to the Mercedes, you know? Throughout the whole weekend, we were faster. And now, in the race, we’re completely out of it. The car was terrible to drive.
“Just in the last few laps, I don’t know how we ended up with no battery. So, on the straights, I couldn’t defend against the Ferraris, which cost us the podium due to something so trivial.”
Isack Hadjar, Red Bull Racing
Throughout the 30-lap stretch under green-flag conditions, Hadjar lost an average of 0.881s to his teammate Max Verstappen.
When asked if his speed deficiency was related to the degradation issues sometimes observed with Red Bull’s RB22 or tied to the power unit, Hadjar clarified: “No, it’s on the chassis side. The power unit was fine; it was just the first two laps after the restart where I don’t know why we were so low on battery. Then it evened out and I was quick again. Otherwise, I would have maintained third.
“I’m not sure, just the grip. Even behind the safety car, I sensed I had no grip and it was going to be a tough restart for me. It felt like I was always on the same tyres. I reverted to the run-one compound, so… It’s a joke.
“The whole weekend, I was quite fast, so… We need to resolve the issue, come back in Singapore, and perform better.”
At least Red Bull secured its first grand prix win of the season with Max Verstappen, but when this was mentioned to Hadjar, he found it hard to see any silver lining.
“Yeah, but you know, it’s not a good day for me,” he replied. “I’m happy for the team, but it’s a disaster for me.”
Hadjar’s 10 points, alongside Verstappen’s 25, still aided Red Bull in closing the gap to McLaren for third place in the constructors’ championship, as the deficit shrank from 76 to 18 points over the last two races.
More from this section
Max Verstappen shares his thoughts on the heartfelt reaction of his father, Jos Verstappen, following his significant victory in Sepang.
The risky choice of slick tires that hindered McLaren and Ferrari's prospects in Bahrain F1
Lewis Hamilton likens F1 power units to "LEGO" following the glitch at the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Clarified: The underlying issues surrounding the FIA software glitch that led to turmoil in Malaysia's F1 race.
"Disastrous, completely intolerable" - Helpless F1 drivers express their frustration over Bahrain F1 software malfunction
