Isack Hadjar revealed that an unspecified but “painful” car issue was the cause of his last-place finish at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix.
The Racing Bulls rookie had started eighth on the grid at Spa-Francorchamps, looking to continue his impressive run of form in his debut season.
But ultimately, he would fall back through the field to finish last, becoming the one and only driver to get lapped.
Perhaps doubly frustrating for Hadjar was that his chances for points would have been likely had the issue not occurred, given team-mate Liam Lawson finished eighth.
After the race, Hadjar divulged that something had happened to his VCARB 02, resulting in him being helpless as he tumbled down the order.
“I had a problem with the car, but I just can’t say much, but [it was] very, very frustrating,” he told media including Motorsport Week.
“It made me not competitive, and losing quite a bit of time every lap consistently, and I was aware of it. I did my best, and it was super painful at a special track like this.
“I had no chance to fight. Even if I started way ahead, I would have been caught and overtaken.”
Racing Bulls miss out on double-points finish
Hadjar acknowledged there was a huge amount of promise going into the race, given both he and Lawson had qualified inside the top 10.
It seemed that more crucial points for its battle in the midfield of F1’s Constructors’ Championship were a big possibility, but for Hadjar, it was not meant to be.
“The pace has been super strong the whole weekend,” he added.
“So, what happened today makes no sense, [but] where we have ended up makes a lot of sense, so it’s a shame for the team to miss on a double-points finish.”
The Frenchman indicated that perhaps a race with some bad luck was a necessary learning curve for him, but said he was hopeful of being able to bounce back at the Hungarian Grand Prix this weekend.
“I needed a weekend like this,” he contended. “Obviously it didn’t end the way we wanted, but we had a tough run, and we are aware it happens over a very long championship, and the goal is to get back up and understand and improve, and that’s what we did here.
“We turned it around really well, and we’re confident for Budapest.”
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