Isack Hadjar is positive but "quite p!ssed" by a mistake that cost him a top three result in Montreal

The Red Bull driver impressed throughout Saturday in Montreal. Topping Q2 and looking capable of challenging the Mercedes and McLarens near the front. But a mistake on his first Q3 run left him without a proper reference heading into the final attempt, and Hadjar ultimately settled for P7 on the grid.

Hadjar admitted afterwards: “I made a mistake on the first run of Q3, and I couldn’t really have a good reference heading into that final lap, and I was kind of overdriving it. It’s really a shame because it’s the first time this year we’ve had such a good car, and I had to kind of throw it all away because I didn’t do a good job. I’m quite p!ssed."

The fiery 21-year-old Frenchman was particularly frustrated because Red Bull had made a major step forward between the sprint and qualifying: “We need to understand why we were so much quicker than yesterday, even though I have an idea. That’s definitely positive, but then on the other hand I should have been in that top three, and I wasn't."

Hadjar later reiterated in the team report that he had overdriven the car when it mattered most: “The guys did a very good job to turn the car around from what was a frustrating sprint race. To go from nowhere in the Sprint to P1 in Q2 is brilliant.

“I had a very good start to qualifying, felt very comfortable in the car, and made a big step forward in terms of pace. When it mattered, I couldn’t put the lap together and was overdriving the car, so I am very frustrated with myself."

“It is definitely positive to have made these steps, but I should have been fighting for a podium," lamented Hadjar, whose difficult day had started earlier in the Sprint, where a technical issue initially forced him into retirement before he later rejoined at the back of the field.

Red Bull CEO and Team Principal Laurent Mekies admitted the team still has work to do despite the encouraging signs in Montreal: “Qualifying did not go particularly smoothly for us. We were very competitive in some parts of the session, but then we struggled a bit in others. We have seen this throughout the weekend, and we do not believe it is down to one single factor.

“However, we have learnt a lot, and this will allow us to continue our progression. Then if you look at the overall result, we are three tenths off pole, and it’s fair to say it’s probably an accurate reflection of where we are right now, and we know how much work we still have in front of us to close the gap further."

With an eye on the weather, Mekies warned, "Rain is forecast for the race, and I think we can expect a chaotic race, considering that we have not yet run these cars in the wet. It could be a steep learning curve for everyone and extremely tricky for the 22 drivers out there, but also very entertaining for the fans.”

Hadjar, who looked the real deal in qualifying, will want to put his self-inflicted, race-ending Miami Grand Prix crash behind him and score a strong result in Montreal. Perhaps take advantage of a weekend in which Verstappen is not happy, and beat the Dutchman. These will be rare opportunities.