Isack Hadjar secures the points despite a turbulent race: “We got a little lucky”

Finishing eighth in the Chinese Grand Prix, Isack Hadjar had a race that was anything but smooth. Starting ninth, the Frenchman lost a lot of ground on the very first lap after spinning out, before fighting his way back up the field in a race full of twists and turns. At the finish, four welcome points… but also the feeling that he could have done better.

Isack Hadjar's race had started well, however. Starting ninth on the grid, the Red Bull driver immediately found himself in the thick of the battle with Oliver Bearman in the opening corners.

But the episode was quickly cut short. “On the first lap, I was really surprised by how the car handled.”

After making contact with the British driver's Haas, the Frenchman's car effectively lost traction abruptly. “I had managed to regain the position after the contact with Bearman, but I couldn't get the car back on track after that.”

The spin caused him to lose several positions and ruined much of his early race. “It's a shame, because we could have fought for a lot more points today.”

An opportunistic comeback

Despite this incident, Hadjar managed to stay in the race. In a particularly eventful Grand Prix—marked by several retirements—the Frenchman gradually worked his way up the field.

In the end, he finished eighth and scored four points for Red Bull.

He acknowledges that this performance was also largely due to circumstances. “We got a bit lucky with some cars that had problems, which allowed us to finish in the points.”

The rookie remains realistic about the car's overall performance level. “Clearly, our pace wasn't incredible all weekend.”

A weekend that helped us understand the car

Beyond the raw result, Hadjar also takes away lessons learned from this Chinese weekend. “This is the first time I've completed so many laps in a row.”

Red Bull conducted numerous tests and adjustments throughout the weekend. “I drove on all the tires this weekend, and we tried a lot of things with the car.”

While these experiments didn't necessarily help immediate performance, they should provide a better understanding of the car. “It didn't help us in terms of pure performance, but it will help us understand quite a few things.”

Red Bull Still Searching for Pace

The situation remains more concerning, however, for the Milton Keynes team. After Hadjar's retirement the previous week due to a power unit issue, this time it was Max Verstappen who had to retire in China.

The Dutch driver brought his car back to the pits at a crawl after an electrical issue visible on screen caused the steering wheel to suddenly go dark.

Add to that a general lack of pace and yet another difficult start for Verstappen, and the conclusion is clear: Red Bull has work to do.

Meanwhile, Mercedes and Ferrari seem to have pulled ahead.

In this context, the four points earned by Isack Hadjar almost feel like a small victory… even though the Frenchman surely knows he can aim higher when everything goes right.