Isack Hadjar endured a tough Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, where a car issue derailed what could have been a promising result. Starting off well and running ahead of teammate Liam Lawson in eighth place, things began to unravel after the team chose to pit Lawson first when the track began to dry. This strategy went against the norm of prioritizing the lead car and ended up costing Hadjar valuable track position.
Hadjar pitted one lap later but quickly lost ground. It soon became evident that his car was suffering from a technical problem, which forced him into an unexpected second pit stop despite having relatively fresh tyres. From that point, he found himself at the back of the grid and was unable to recover for the rest of the race. He acknowledged the issue after the race but didn’t disclose specifics, only noting it impacted his lap times significantly.
Despite the disappointment, Hadjar praised the efforts of the team and expressed confidence in the car’s potential, calling it frustrating that such a setback occurred when the vehicle felt otherwise strong. He believed that both drivers could have finished in the points had things gone smoothly, and he remains optimistic about bouncing back at the next race in Budapest.
Liam Lawson, meanwhile, capitalized on the team’s strategy by finishing eighth and bringing home valuable points. He benefited from the early pit stop, which saw him rejoin the race in seventh before losing a spot to Lewis Hamilton. Lawson then held off Gabriel Bortoleto to secure his second points finish in the last three races, which served as a strong recovery after crashing out at Silverstone in wet conditions.
Lawson expressed satisfaction with his performance, noting how challenging it is to switch to dry tyres on a damp track. He praised the car’s performance in clean air and emphasized the importance of small details in a tight championship battle. Racing Bulls now sit seventh in the Constructors’ standings, just two points behind Kick Sauber, and have built a five-point cushion over their nearest challengers thanks to Lawson’s result and Aston Martin’s failure to score.
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