Isack Hadjar Aims for First F1 Points to Overcome Melbourne Disappointment

Isack Hadjar has bounced back from his disappointing DNS in Melbourne by qualifying seventh for the F1 Chinese Grand Prix.

The Red Bull rookie believes he has a good chance of scoring his first Formula 1 points in China as he tries to move on from his crash in Melbourne.

After failing to start the Australian Grand Prix last weekend following a crash in the wet formation lap, Hadjar was impressive in Shanghai, qualifying seventh on Saturday.

The 20-year-old set a best time of 1m31.079s in Q3, placing him right behind the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, but ahead of Mercedes' Andrea Kimi Antonelli and his more experienced teammate Yuki Tsunoda.

Despite some concerns about his long-run performance, the French-Algerian driver is optimistic about his chances of finishing in the top 10 and scoring his first points.

"To be honest, I'm really proud of the team," he told Sky TV. "I didn't believe how good the car was. I was on it straight away in Q1 and was pushing the limit, so I'm happy with what I have.

"Obviously, they are realistically out of reach in the long run. But if I can do the start, I think I'm in a good position to score my first points. That's the target for sure.

"To be fair, coming from F2, this is very good practice for tyre management. This is my first sprint race and I feel from mid-race onwards, I was quite good on tyre management. But this is something we need to pay attention to.

"When asked if he was confident of holding off the quicker Mercedes of Antonelli behind him, he said: "I would say it's not possible. If he has a pace advantage in the long run, he can do an undercut, overcut.

"I'll do my best, but P8 is quite satisfying.

Hadjar was warming up his tires when he spun his VCAR 02 at Turn 2 on the formation lap in Melbourne, which meant he couldn't even take the grid for what was supposed to be his F1 debut.

The 2024 F2 runner-up looked crestfallen after the DNS and was given a hug by Anthony Hamilton as he walked back to the paddock, with his initial reaction described as "embarrassing" by Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko.

When asked what he did in the short break between the events in Melbourne and Shanghai to bounce back, he said: "I didn't change anything.

"I knew this could happen, it has happened to me before, a sad moment, but I'm very excited to go to Shanghai and drive again.