Isack Hadjar was left fuming after a technical issue with his battery robbed him of a podium finish at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. The promising French rookie, who had been enjoying strong form all weekend, saw his race unravel in the closing laps.
Hadjar’s weekend began with a strong third-place qualifying effort, but a grid penalty dropped him to eighth at the start. Undeterred, he made the right call by starting on intermediate tyres, which suited the wet conditions at the Sepang International Circuit after a lengthy delay.
Despite the tricky weather, Hadjar’s race was going well. He climbed to fourth place before the final safety car, and then moved up to third when George Russell’s car suffered a power unit failure ahead of him. But after the restart, disaster struck: a sudden battery issue meant Hadjar couldn’t defend against the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc on the straights.
At the finish, Hadjar had to settle for fifth place, missing out on what could have been a second consecutive podium.
“I had no pace, but something was clearly wrong,” Hadjar said after the race. “We were faster than Mercedes all weekend, but suddenly in the race, we had nothing. I don’t know how we ended up with no battery power—on the straights, I just couldn’t fight off the Ferraris. It’s frustrating to lose a podium over something so stupid.”
He also revealed that grip issues added to his struggles, even before the restart.
“The first two laps after the safety car, the battery was down and I was vulnerable. Then it stabilized and I was quick again, but by then it was too late. I also felt like I was always on the wrong tyres and lacked grip from the restart.”
Meanwhile, Hadjar’s teammate Max Verstappen celebrated Red Bull’s first win of the season, having started from pole.
Hadjar is now looking to bounce back and resolve these technical issues before the next race in Singapore, determined to get back on the podium.
