Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko says the sight of rookie Isack Hadjar crying following his pre-race crash at the Australian Grand Prix was “embarrassing”.
Hadjar’s Formula One debut was over before the race even began when the Racing Bulls driver spun into the wall on the formation lap and broke his rear wing, ruling him out of the race.
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The 18-year-old Frenchman was trying to warm up his tyres when he came unstuck, and he was devastated to end his debut so quickly.
David Croft said in commentary on Sky Sports: “He backed off to then floor it to put some heat into his tyres. This is not a day to be doing that.”
Hadjar cut a folorn figure as he trudged back to the pits and the start of the race was delayed while his car was craned off the track.
“He’s crying his eyes out,” Martin Brundle said on Sky Sports.
Clearly distraught and in tears behind his helmet Hadjar was consoled by Lewis Hamilton’s dad Anthony as the rookie trudged back through the hospitality area at Melbourne Park.
Earlier, Hamilton senior had wished the rookies and all the drivers luck in the wet conditions.
“That’s good support from Anthony there and just horrendous luck for Isack,” Croft said.
But Marko, director of Red Bull’s driver program, was far less sympathetic.
Speaking to Austrian broadcaster ORF, Marko said: “Isack Hadjar did a little bit of crying after his crash. That was a bit embarrassing.”
Marko’s response was the complete opposition to that of Anthony Hamilton, who offered some words of encouragement to Hadjar, who views Lewis Hamilton as his hero.
“When I saw it happen, my heart just sank for him,” Hamilton Sr told Sky Sports.
“Not just for him, for his parents, for everything they’ve done to work hard to get to this one point, and it’s like it’s snatched from you.
“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’. I think he’s a phenomenal driver. I think there’s more to come from Isack than we probably have seen this weekend”.
Hadjar said: “He said, ‘Just keep your head high’.
“I think he knows what tough times are and I think he sees a rookie putting it in the wall on not even lap one and he knows how tough it feels. He came to comfort me and I think it was a really nice gesture from him.”
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was more sympathetic than Marko.
“It was quite heart wrenching to see him so gutted in his first Grand Prix,” Horner said.
“I think the positives he needs to take out of it when he reflects on the weekend. He performed very well through the practices and the qualifying. You forget that these guys are just kids really.
“Obviously a lot of emotion for him today, but I think when he strips it back, there’s an awful lot of positives he can take out of the weekend. He’s got many bright days ahead of him.”
Hadjar was one of six drivers who didn’t finish the race as wet weather wreaked havoc in Melbourne.
Out of the six rookies on the grid, only Kimi Antonelli and Ollie Bearman finished the race.
“I feel embarrassed today, and I can only learn from my mistake and apologise to the team,” Hadjar 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 unsalvagable.
“I just felt like a passenger before hitting the wall. Now I look ahead to be ready to race in China next week.”
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