Overcoming a Challenging Weekend
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has dismissed concerns regarding Isack Hadjar’s difficult outing at the Miami Grand Prix. Despite a weekend marred by technical disqualifications and a race-ending crash, the team leadership remains confident that the performance was merely a temporary setback.
Hadjar’s weekend in Miami was far from ideal. After struggling to match the pace of his teammate Max Verstappen in the updated RB car, the French driver faced further complications when he was disqualified from qualifying due to an issue with the car's floorboards. This forced him to start the race from the pit lane.
Technical Oversight and Driver Error
Mekies took full responsibility for the technical error that led to the disqualification. He clarified that the team failed to identify that a compulsory component was two millimeters too wide during routine inspections before the car entered parc ferme.
Regarding the race incident, where Hadjar hit the wall at Turn 14, Mekies noted that the driver struggled to find his rhythm throughout the event. However, he emphasized that the team’s own mistakes put Hadjar in a difficult position from the start. «We certainly didn't have a clean weekend. We didn't help him either by sending him from the back of the grid after our mistake with the legality of the car. So no, not worried,» Mekies stated.
Hadjar’s Perspective on the Incident
The 21-year-old driver admitted that a lapse in concentration caused his exit from the race. Despite feeling that he had more speed compared to previous rounds, he acknowledged that he failed to extract the full potential from the updated vehicle.
«I was too eager and too excited about making those moves and just ruined myself,» Hadjar confessed. «It was easy to overtake and I should have been more cautious. There was no point trying to flirt with the limit in this corner.»
Despite the frustration, Hadjar remains optimistic about the car’s development. He noted that although he couldn't execute his plan perfectly, the improvements made to the vehicle are clear. The team is now focusing on regaining their competitive momentum ahead of the upcoming race in Montreal, with expectations that the technical issues are easily rectified.