Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has branded F1 driver Isack Hadjar’s tearful reaction after crashing during the Australian Grand Prix formation lap as “embarrassing.”
The 20-year-old Racing Bulls driver was seen visibly upset after losing control of his car in wet conditions, ending his F1 debut before the race even began.
Speaking to Austrian broadcaster ORF, Marko was critical of the young driver’s emotional display.
“Isack Hadjar did a little bit of crying after his crash. That was a bit embarrassing,” Marko said.
Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko has branded F1 driver Isack Hadjar’s tearful reaction after crashing during the Australian Grand Prix formation lap as “embarrassing”
REUTERS
The incident occurred at Turn 2 during Sunday’s formation lap at the Albert Park circuit.
Hadjar had been performing impressively throughout the weekend, featuring in the top-10 during practice sessions.
He narrowly missed out on Q3, qualifying 11th on Saturday at the Melbourne circuit.
However, heavy rain on Sunday transformed the Albert Park street venue into treacherous conditions that challenged all drivers.
Isack Hadjar was visibly upset after crashing out of the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday
REUTERS
The young driver lost control of his Racing Bulls machine at Turn 2 during the formation lap.
His car spun off the track and hit the wall, immediately ending his race.
“I just felt like a passenger before hitting the wall,” Hadjar later explained about the incident.
The world feed cameras captured his distress as he returned to the paddock, visibly tearful at the missed opportunity.
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Hadjar himself acknowledged feeling embarrassed, though not for his emotional reaction but for the crash itself.
“I feel embarrassed today, and I can only learn from my mistake and apologise to the team,” he said.
“There were tricky conditions out there, and from the installation laps, I felt very low grip and poor confidence.
“In the formation lap, I tried to prepare the tyres as much as I could, but unfortunately, I had a spin and the car was unsavable.”
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In stark contrast to Marko’s criticism, Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner offered a more sympathetic response.
“It was quite heart-wrenching to see him so gutted,” Horner said.
“When he reflects on the weekend, he performed very well through the practices and the qualifying.”
Horner added: “You forget that these guys are just kids, really.”
Isack Hadjar received words of comfort from Anthony Hamilton at the Australian Grand PrixGETTY
Anthony Hamilton, father of Lewis, also showed support by consoling Hadjar in the paddock.
“When I saw it happen, my heart just sank for him,” Hamilton Sr told Sky Sports.
“I just felt terrible for him, so I thought ‘you know what, I need to go and tell this kid keep your head high, walk tall, you’re gonna come back’.”