Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar endured a tough F1 Austrian GP weekend that saw mid-race promise turn into disappointment. Despite showing strong pace and a smart strategy call by his team, floor damage late in the race ended his hopes of finishing in the points.
“Yeah,” Hadjar admitted when asked about losing out on lap one, “but somehow we made the two-stop work really well, and 15 laps before the end we were in the points, and before we picked up damage from the floor, so that was it.”
Strategy gamble almost pays off for Isack Hadjar in F1 Austrian GP
Despite the early setback, the team rolled the dice with an aggressive first-lap pit stop to shift to a two-stop strategy, a move that looked to be paying off as he ran in P8 after the Saubers had made their second stops.
“Apparently. It worked out really well,” Hadjar said when asked if it was the right call. “We were really close from Liam, who was on a one-stop. It’s just really frustrating.”
The weekend was especially bittersweet considering teammate Liam Lawson’s strong performance, finishing P6 and showcasing the potential of the car when things go right.
“Seeing Liam showing all the potential he has… I mean obviously points-wise [it was] really bad,” Hadjar reflected. “But the turnaround we made from Friday to Saturday was really good. On Friday we were not amazing on one lap, and especially race pace was not great, and we managed to turn things around.”
“Today, honestly, I felt super-fast, and Liam finished P6, so I think on this point of view, very good job from the team. It’s just a shame – we could have had a double-point finish.”
As Hadjar looks ahead to the next round, there’s no doubt that the pace and potential are there, now it’s a matter of translating it into results.
