Isack Hadjar reflects on his P8 finish in the 2025 F1 Japanese GP as the Racing Bulls’ rookie secured his first 4 points of his Formula 1 career.
A perfect race as Isack Hadjar maximises result at F1 Japanese GP
Isack Hadjar enjoyed a successful Japanese Grand Prix weekend on Sunday. From a strong starting position of P7, Hadjar came home in P8, securing the first four points of his F1 career. From lights to flag, the young Frenchman lost only 1 position to the Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton.
Reflecting on his performance in the print media zone, Hadjar considered the F1 Japanese GP perfectly executed, with the team maximising their result.
Despite a late charge from Alex Albon, Hadjar had built a gap to secure his P8 from the Williams.
“Yeah that was, all we could have done today was P8, and we did it,” he replied when asked about his loss of position to Lewis Hamilton. “I think it was a perfectly executed race. Left nothing on the table, and the pace was definitely strong.
“I must say, especially on the medium, in the first stint, I felt really, really strong. And the first half as well, on the hard. Later on Alex [Albon] was just flying. He was catching bit by bit, but I had enough gap to secure the place. So we still need to review it, but all in all it was good.”
Reflecting back on his charge to Q3, Hadjar was asked about his discomfort in the car. Despite an impressive P7 result in qualifying, Hadjar was heard on the radio complaining of discomfort from his seatbelt.
The Racing Bulls man was asked if the issue persisted on Sunday, which he denied. He was also asked if the discomfort he endured was worth his eventual points haul on Sunday.
“No,” He replied when asked if the issue persisted. “I was all good during the whole race. Yeah, four points? Yeah [I would take the pain again.]”
His strong form from the start of his rookie F1 campaign
The young rookie was then asked if he felt his season was beginning to build momentum. With tongue in cheek, Hadjar quipped he had found his rhythm from the first session in Melbourne.
He then went on to delve into his performances and issues in the opening three Grands Prix as Racing Bulls messed up the strategy once again.
“I think I found some rhythm in FP1 in Melbourne already,” he replied. “Then we had this mess up in Shanghai, we were on for points, quite comfortably. So I think now everything was put together and we got points on merit.”
Looking ahead to Bahrain
Hadjar was also asked about his preparation for the next Grand Prix in Bahrain. He was asked if his previous experience would make a difference. Having contested the opening three weekends on circuits he had not previously driven, Hadjar claims he did not find it any harder.
“To be honest, especially with three practice sessions,” he explained, looking ahead to next weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix. “All the sim prep we got, I think there’s always going to be the final tenth of a second when you perfectly know a track. But I don’t feel like it’s making it more difficult.”
