Despite a preparation heavily disrupted by his Friday accident, Isack Hadjar managed to secure a solid fifth place on the grid for the Monaco Grand Prix. A performance that the Frenchman is fully satisfied with.
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In Monaco, confidence is often the key to performance. And from this point of view, Isack Hadjar did not approach qualifying in the best possible conditions. A victim of a violent accident during the first free practice session on Friday, the Red Bull driver spent a good part of the weekend trying to regain his bearings on the most demanding track on the calendar.
Despite this complicated context, the Frenchman managed to set the fifth fastest time in qualifying, thus securing a place on the third row of the grid for the race.
After the session, Hadjar admitted that this performance had required a real mental effort, as his level of confidence was still fragile after his mistake the day before.
“Honestly, I still went for it. With yesterday’s crash, I lacked confidence. In FP2, the car was put back together a bit crooked and it was complicated. In FP3, I tried to regain confidence, but it wasn’t the best preparation.”
A gradual build-up of power throughout qualifying
While the final result is very positive, the French driver did not immediately find his rhythm. According to his own admission, the difficulties were still very present during Q1.
It was only during the second part of qualifying that he began to rediscover the sensations that had allowed him to shine on several occasions since the start of the season.
“Even in Q1, I struggled. Then in Q2, I really found lap time and I was satisfied with what I managed to do.”
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Hadjar, however, hoped to reach a new level during the final phase of qualifying. But not everything went as planned.
“In Q3, I thought I could still make more progress. However, I didn’t have the right feeling on my first attempt. I had to go back a bit on the settings before finding something more comfortable. It really wasn’t simple.”
A move to make at the start?
Thanks to this fifth place, Hadjar finds himself ideally placed behind the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. A position that could allow him to take advantage of any opportunity as soon as the lights go out.
The Frenchman remains aware, however, that starts are not the Red Bull car’s strong point this season. Facing him, the Ferraris have regularly demonstrated excellent traction during take-offs.
However, Hadjar does not intend to settle for an observer role.
“We don’t make the best starts on the grid, so it won’t be easy. But I can imagine a situation where several cars find themselves side by side in front of me, and try to take advantage of it.”
On a circuit where overtaking is often an exploit, the first corner could represent his best chance to gain positions. After a weekend that had started very badly, the Frenchman has already managed to save the essential in qualifying. Now it remains to transform this fine fifth place into a prestigious result in the streets of the Principality.
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