F1
Red Bull tips its hat to Isack Hadjar for his debut: "He performed perfectly"
© DPPI
The relationship between Isack Hadjar and the Australian Grand Prix is definitely not improving. A year after a difficult debut in the category, marked by an accident during the formation lap, the Frenchman... Red Bull He started from the second row at the wheel of his RB22. But his promotion to the main team didn't help the Frenchman break the Australian curse. Quite the opposite.
The Red Bull Powertrains/Ford engine failed after only eleven laps, while the Frenchman was still in the top 5 following his brilliant qualifying performance and a good start at the lights. I knew the engine was going to explode after the first corner; the noise changed completely after the start. explains the Red Bull driver. The only positive thing is that I get off to a great start, and then my battery dies. »
However, there are some positives to take away from this opening round. Starting third on the grid, Isack Hadjar joins a select few Red Bull drivers to have qualified in the top 3 for their debut with the Austrian team: Daniel Ricciardo (2nd in Australia 2014) and Sebastian Vettel (3rd in Australia 2009). And this despite mixed winter testing.
« From the very first lap in FP1 on Friday, he was immediately up to speed. We were able to split the testing program between the cars and gather twice as much information. He approached qualifying with all that it entails for his first time under these regulations. He performed flawlessly. (while his teammate Max Verstappen (Editor's note.), congratulates the team manager, Laurent Mekies. He put the car in third position, which was probably the best possible result on Saturday. Honestly, hats off to him. And today, he was on track for a blistering start before he realized we didn't have enough battery charge. »
Another encouraging fact: the " good pace in the race " underlined by his boss." It's a shame we lost the engine with Isack. He had a great weekend, he managed to survive the first few laps, but that's part of the game! It was the first race for our Red Bull Ford engine, we know there's a lot of work to do. »
Finally, on the other side of the garage, Max Verstappen staged an incredible comeback during the race, demonstrating the potential of the Austrian car. It remains to be seen whether Isack Hadjar can capitalize on this in the next round of the F1 scheduled to take place in China on March 15th.
ALSO READ > Australian GP: Mercedes takes a one-two finish ahead of Ferrari, Hadjar's ordeal
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vincent moyet
11/03/2026 at 05:47 a.m.
It's a change from Perez crushed by Horner and Marko's toxic management, or Tsunoda and Lawson being completely absent. Red Bull Racing needs to prepare for the future, and it could well be Hajar, as Verstappen seems about to slam the door on F1. He was already criticizing the old system, so the new one holds no appeal for him. And if the car doesn't allow him to win, he has few alternatives: the possibility of him joining Newey and Honda at Aston Martin is off the table, the McLaren seats are locked, and it's no longer certain he'd have a place at Mercedes, who have found a formidable driver pairing. What about Ferrari if Hamilton decides to retire?
Joel Gaboriaud
11/03/2026 at 05:31 a.m.
I've read this a million times before.
Alain Féguenne (🇱🇺 Luxembourg)
11/03/2026 at 04:16 a.m.
RBR can congratulate their driver Isack, because after a magnificent qualifying session (3rd) and a very good start to the race, he was in a position to finish 4th or 5th. But unfortunately, his engine had other ideas! Revenge at the next GP (China) alainkf1@pt.lu 😎Isack🇫🇷👍