Isack Hadjar admitted that he was “too kind” when fighting for position with Max Verstappen at the Formula 1 British GP. The Frenchman believes he could have made life more difficult for his teammate in the early laps of the race in Silverstone.
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In his debut season at Red Bull, Hadjar started from fifth position after beating Verstappen on the grid, who started seventh. The Frenchman held fifth place until being overtaken by the four-time world champion on the fourth lap. At the end of the race, Verstappen retired after a problem with the rear wing, while Hadjar finished fifth, also benefiting from problems faced by Kimi Antonelli.
After the race, Hadjar assessed that he was too permissive in the internal duel. “I think I was kind to Max. But it was also good to follow him, and I was doing that very well. Then, suddenly, there was a huge loss of pace. Maybe I did something wrong in tire management,” he said in an interview with the press, including F1MANIA.NET.
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The driver explained that the drop in performance had another explanation. “I put on new Hard tires and had no pace at all. I was very confused, until they told me we were losing downforce on the car. After they changed the front wing, the performance came back immediately. I gained almost two seconds at once. It was a wasted race,” he said.
Even lamenting the technical problem, Hadjar highlighted the learning gained by racing behind Verstappen. “It was very good, I managed to follow him for a few laps until I completely lost pace. He was very impressive again, he was fighting for the podium, so it was a good reference. I just wish I hadn’t had to change the front wing,” he concluded. After nine rounds of the season, Hadjar is in eighth place in the drivers’ championship, just 24 points behind Verstappen.
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