Hadjar blames himself for Russell clash that spun away his Mexico GP podium shot

Isack Hadjar salvaged two points from the Mexico City Grand Prix after a first-lap spin triggered by contact with George Russell left him 22nd and fighting through the field at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez — yet the Red Bull rookie was quick to point the finger at himself as much as the Mercedes driver.

Hadjar had qualified seventh, two tenths and three grid slots behind team-mate Max Verstappen, but a strong start moved him up two places before the incident at Turn 6. Russell kept his front tyres alongside Hadjar’s rear wheels rather than backing out, sending the Frenchman into a spin. Russell was handed a 10-second penalty for the move, though he did not speak to media after the race.

“It’s a shame,” Hadjar said. “I honestly did not expect George to stick a wheel up Turn 6, because the corner was completely mine. I was aware of him, and I shouldn’t have trusted him in the end, but it happens. Clearly, it’s a shame, it’s completely ruined my race.”

Despite acknowledging Russell’s role, Hadjar was candid about where he felt the real damage was done — the day before.

“To me, honestly, it’s my fault if that happened today, the lap-one incident. If I had done a better job yesterday, I wouldn’t be starting seventh, maybe we are fighting for better than a podium and we don’t meet George on the way. I should have done a better job.”

Dropped to the back with minor floor damage, Hadjar pitted on lap seven — among the first drivers in — and spent the remainder of the race picking his way through the order. He passed Valtteri Bottas, Ryo Hirakawa, Carlos Sainz and Sergio Perez in succession, but a poorly timed stop just before the safety car and red flag cost him further track position. Additional overtakes on Sainz, Nico Hulkenberg, Perez and Alex Albon brought him only as far as 12th before the points positions came into view.

The pace was there, Hadjar insisted, even if the circuit made progress brutally difficult.

“Pace on the medium on the first stint, any time I had free air, was good. When we pitted for the soft, I only did two laps, but I felt super quick. During that lap one, I was like ‘OK, I have a shot for the podium’, and then it was finished.”

The altitude and heat in Mexico City compounded the challenge of racing in traffic, with DRS trains making clean overtaking nearly impossible.

“Everyone has straight mode,” he said. “It’s just a train of cars and there’s no way to really overtake. I really struggled. I even had a great fight with Checo. He was very late on the brakes in the straight, I wasn’t really catching up. It was terribly hard.”

Two points from what looked like a podium opportunity will sting, but Hadjar’s willingness to own his qualifying shortfall suggests a driver already thinking about how to avoid the same situation next time.