Isack Hadjar has also had an unfortunate Chinese GP. The Frenchman lost control of his steering wheel on the first lap and therefore had to go in early for new tires, which quickly made a good result impossible. Hadjar now says that his RB22 did not perform as desired.
Hadjar was in a battle with Oliver Bearman on the first lap, when the Red Bull driver suddenly spun after overtaking. Bearman was able to narrowly avoid Hadjar’s car and continue his way, but the Frenchman had to go in for new rubber, which put him at the back.
In an interview after the race he explains what exactly happened to him during the opening phase. The driver makes it clear that it was not he, but the car that was at fault.
“The car was [zondag] just incredibly difficult to drive, much more difficult than the last two days”Hadjar starts opposite RacingNews365. “It surprised me on the first lap, and I was actually struggling with it all race long.”
“It happened very suddenly, the way the car shot out from under me. I didn’t have time to do anything about it. The thing just spun away and I was done.”
Despite his painful start, Hadjar eventually managed to score some points. The Frenchman ultimately finished eighth, meaning he managed to record his first Grand Prix points for this year. In Melbourne the driver dropped out early due to a cooling problem.
The same thing happened to Max Verstappen. The Dutchman had to drop out ten laps before the flag because the ERS cooling system was not working properly. Hadjar admits that there is little prospect of improvement in Japan at the moment.
“With the package we have at the moment, this is all we can deliver”he said. “We just have to wait and understand why this isn’t working.”
