Racing Bulls’ bold two-stop strategy backfired badly in Shanghai, costing both Hadjar and Tsunoda valuable points despite strong race pace.
Racing Bulls left the Chinese Grand Prix disappointed, missing out on a top 10 finish after opting for a two-stop strategy — while most of their rivals made just one.
Rookie Isack Hadjar, who started an impressive P7, crossed the line in 14th but was promoted to 11th after three post-race disqualifications. Still, it wasn’t enough to score points, and he knows exactly why.
“I didn’t realize how clearly the one-stop was the way to go,” Hadjar told Canal+. “I got a great start, I was side by side with Charles [Leclerc] into Turn 1. But in Shanghai, so much depends on what’s happening ahead of you. Yuki was super aggressive to grab position early on.”
Despite the result, the young Frenchman stayed positive:
“I think I drove a great race. I was faster than the cars in front and even put pressure on [Kimi] Antonelli. Honestly, I’m happy with my performance — I did my job.”
Hadjar was also forced off track several times by Jack Doohan, who was handed a 10-second penalty. Looking back, Hadjar was pragmatic:
“I wasn’t even aware we were outside the points at the time. I thought we were fighting for something meaningful — turns out we weren’t. So, his moves were kind of pointless in the end.”
Tsunoda Fumes Over Strategy Fail
Teammate Yuki Tsunoda was visibly frustrated. A broken front wing mid-race, along with the questionable strategy, left him feeling that the team let a potential opportunity slip.
“I’m very disappointed,” Tsunoda admitted. “The start was good, but we clearly should’ve gone with a better strategy. I understand the intention, but it just didn’t work.”
As for the wing damage, he was baffled:
“I didn’t hit anyone — it just broke. Parts fail sometimes, but we need to make sure it doesn’t happen again. I expected more today.”
Tsunoda also highlighted that their race pace wasn’t as strong as it had been during the Sprint.
“We need to look into that. But most importantly, we have to make better strategy calls. That’s the biggest lesson from today — avoid avoidable mistakes.”
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Hadjar Fights Hard – But Racing Bulls Strategy Falls Flat Hadjar Fights Hard – But Racing Bulls Strategy Falls Flat
