Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls, Las Vegas Strip Circuit, 2025

Isack Hadjar said he could have qualified as high as fourth on the grid had he not been forced to abandon his final flying lap.

The Racing Bulls driver had to back off after encountering yellow flags for Charles Leclerc, who slid off at turn 12.

“We got screwed at the end by Charles,” said Hadjar. “He went out, there was a yellow flag and that was it.”

Having reached Q3 for the fifth time in the last six rounds, Hadjar ran as high as fifth before starting his final qualifying lap. He believes he could have claimed an even higher position than that had he finished his final run.

“I was way up on my lap, we were looking at a top four,” he told the official Formula 1 channel. “But a yellow flag is a yellow flag, so that’s it. It’s so frustrating to have to back off for that.”

He will start tomorrow’s race from eighth on the grid, two places behind team mate Liam Lawson. “Of course I’m a bit gutted, I would have liked to start a bit more ahead, but still it’s a good position.”

Hadjar was running behind Oscar Piastri when the pair saw the yellow flags at turn 12. The Racing Bulls driver came close to hitting the McLaren driver as he appeared to slow down later than his rival.

Piastri was also unable to improve on his final lap and will start from fifth on the grid. “I got a yellow flag and that was pretty much the end of it,” he said. “We were quick, there’s no doubt about that, just one way or another, things seem to not be going the way I want at the moment.”

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