Hadjar rues missed front row after ‘disaster’ weekend despite P3 in qualifying
Photo: Race Pictures
Kieran is a freelance Formula 1 journalist for GPblog, covering breaking news, live race blogs and feature content across the F1 calendar. An NQJ-qualified journalist with more than a decade of experience, he has previously written for publications including MailOnline, the Manchester Evening News and the Eastern Daily Press.
Isack Hadjar has described his United States Grand Prix weekend as a “disaster” despite qualifying third behind Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen.
The Frenchman said track-limit deletions and difficulty completing a lap on the soft tyre made the practice sessions difficult, where he also made it clear over the radio that he was not happy with his car. He found more confidence in qualifying after the team made setup changes.
“It’s been a disaster of a weekend for me,” Hadjar said. “I had all my lap times deleted all the time this morning, I couldn’t complete a lap on the soft tyre. I knew there was something in the car, there were times when I could do half a lap and feel comfortable but I could never finish it.”
He added: “In qualifying the car came alive a bit more for me, we dug deep on the setup, we tried so many things this weekend and it really paid off, so on that note it’s really satisfying.”
Hadjar felt front row was possible
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Although he secured P3, Hadjar was left frustrated by his attempts in Q3, particularly the first one, when he felt the conditions cost him time.
“I am a bit gutted about the last lap, more like the first attempt in Q3,” he said. “On that first lap I felt I lost so much time with massive tail wind I got and I felt like there was a bit more today.”
Hadjar also pointed to Max Verstappen’s pace on used tyres in Q2 as a sign that the front row was within reach. He praised Kimi Antonelli for delivering when it mattered.
“I was also quite surprised in Q2 by Max’s lap time on the used tyre. I felt happy, so I felt we had a shot at the front row but Kimi did a fantastic job,” Hadjar said.
Asked whether he could challenge for victory, Hadjar suggested having two cars in the fight could work in his favour.
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“Yeah, also it is the two of us so it is a bit of an advantage. So we will try and use that.”
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