Hadjar struggled for comfort despite "best lap of the weekend" in Austria's qualifying

Hadjar in his upgraded RB22 in Austria | Credit: Formula One

Ahead of his first Austrian Grand Prix with the senior Red Bull team, Isack Hadjar is due to line up eighth and is separated from his teammate by the McLaren pair of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Despite a difficult weekend where he struggled to get going on Friday with disrupted practice sessions, the French driver was still able to demonstrate flashes of considerable pace.

However, despite being quick on a number of occassions, the French driver's assessment of his weekend so far was bleak as he noted that "I didn't feel good the whole weekend" in the car. In a developing trend, Hadjar has been noted to "not [be] very comfortable" and struggle on Friday before settling into the car on Saturday ahead of the all-important qualifying session.

Discussing his run in Q3, where he had front locking heading into Turn 1 and Turn 3, Hadjar was quick to identify his last lap as his "best lap of the weekend" which saw him qualify in eighth. Although the French driver has been vocal about his issues in qualifying, his track-record since joining the senior Red Bull team has been nothing short of impressive. After a disappointing opening race in Australia, Hadjar has been in Q3 for every single race this season.

Hadjar lost out on what would have been his first Red Bull podium in Monaco | Credit: Formula One

Speaking about his chances on Sunday, Hadjar conceded that "tomorrow will be interesting" especially given his position as the "last car of the top eight, of the big group". It is imperative to remember that despite his current issues, even with the upgraded RB22, out of the last three Red Bull teammates that have been partnered with four-time former world champion Max Verstappen, no one has been so close in performance to the Dutch driver.

Given that he is already starting in the points, Hadjar identified that the aim must be to "create some good opportunities for myself" and hopefully move further up the field. In the last few rounds, the French driver has demonstrated his race-craft and wheel-to-wheel skills by making his way through the field although he will be hoping not to fall too far back when the lights go out on Sunday.