Red Bull set record straight on ‘illegal’ actions as Hadjar bags first F1 podium
Isack Hadjar and Red Bull hugs after his maiden F1 podium
Securing his first Formula 1 podium at the Dutch Grand Prix, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has refuted any suggestion that Isack Hadjar wasn’t permitted to challenge Max Verstappen for second place.
Hadjar secured his maiden Formula 1 podium at Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix as the Racing Bull’s driver brought his car home in third place, taking the chequered flag only two seconds down on Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
Isack Hadjar claims first F1 podium at Dutch Grand Prix
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
The only organisation with two Formula 1 teams on the grid, Red Bull and Racing Bull lined up third and fourth on the Zandvoort grid with Verstappen ahead of Hadjar.
They were up against McLaren’s front row lock-out of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris with Mercedes’ George Russell lining up P5 ahead of the Ferraris teammates.
Although Verstappen initially put Lando Norris between himself and his stablemate, Hadjar held his own through the grand prix as he kept Charles Leclerc at bay and then did the same with George Russell.
Running behind Verstappen after Norris overtook the Dutchman, Hadjar wasn’t able to launch an attack but neither, it should be noted, could Leclerc on the Racing Bull driver or Mercedes after him.
Despite three Safety Car restarts, all of which saw Hadjar line up behind Verstappen, the Frenchman didn’t make a play to take the position off of the Red Bull driver. But again, neither Leclerc nor Mercedes were able to successfully attack Hadjar.
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It meant that when the chequered flag fell after 72 laps, it was Hadjar who was the day’s biggest winner as he recorded his maiden grand prix podium having gained a position when Norris retired due to an engine failure.
Norris’ DNF aside, Hadjar was always the driver running behind Verstappen as the McLaren teammates seemingly raced towards P1 and P2 on the day with Verstappen the best of the rest.
Celebrating his first F1 podium, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies put Hadjar’s achievement down to his surprise P4 in qualifying at the Zandvoort circuit.
“For Isack, it was an extraordinary race,” he told the media, including PlanetF1.com. “It was coming.
“It’s just a testimony of how good of a job, of how amazing of a job, he has been doing since the beginning of the season.
“And you know, he doesn’t score a podium on the day where it’s raining, or it is raining but another day where it’s a wet race and strange conditions, he put the car in P4 on merit in qualifying, and he stayed a couple of seconds from Max all race long.
“So, you know, hats off to him, to Racing Balls.
“And again, it didn’t come by luck but by a lot of hard work from these guys.”
But trailing Verstappen throughout the 72-lap grand prix, it begged the question was Hadjar even allowed – under Red Bull’s regulations – to attack senior driver Verstappen.
Mekies was quick to quash any suggestion of team orders between Red Bull and Racing Bulls.
“If it was not allowed, it would be illegal,” he insisted. “So the answer is, yes he was allowed.
“And I remind you that last race we finished behind the Racing Bulls in Budapest.”
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