A major start line accident in the F2 Feature Race in Baku took out innocent victims Pepe Martí and Oliver Goethe though neither was injured. Fellow Red Bull Junior and championship leader Isack Hadjar had lost his fastest time in Qualifying after causing a Red Flag when he crashed so started both Azerbaijan races back in 20th.
Hadjar delayed his Feature Race mandatory pitstop hoping for a Safety Car but it didn't come in time and the 19-year-old Frenchman lost the championship lead after scoring no points in either race. He is now second, just 4.5 points behind the leader with two rounds, four races, remaining.
Hadjar battling to recover from P20 in Qualifying
“The first run in Quali was promising as we were 9th, leading the pack. The tow was about 5-7 tenths through the lap. So starting the second run we managed to be last of the field and benefit from the best tow. All that to lose the rear brakes and end the session there…”
“I made the most of the Sprint, had a great first lap gaining 4 places from 20th. Then a strong race pace gets us 2 more places but I started degrading a lot. Then after the SC restart, I got to win one more place but picked up damage. Realistically that was the comeback I expected from me so I’m happy with that.”
“Today I was glad not to be involved in the crash. At the restart, there was not enough time remaining to hope for good things. I extended as long as possible on the SS to hope for a SC but it just never came. After the pit stop, I was lost as I lost so much time staying out. Couldn’t catch up at the end with a last-minute SC…”
“Anyway, a weekend to forget again. Can’t do much when qualifying 20th.”
“Obviously not the weekend we would hope for,” stated the 19-year-old Spaniard. “Free practice was OK, we had decent pace until we were struck with some rain and I made a small mistake. Into Quali, we chose to go without a tow for the first run. At the start of the second run, with the tow, I just lost the brakes into Turn 1 and that was our Quali over.
"Starting 21st there is not much to do. Yesterday we had a decent race, moving up to P13 but then unfortunately collected some damage on the front wing and had to box. Instead of P13 or P12, we came home in 19th."
"I was confident that with some balance adjustments and driving adjustments today we would be very competitive. Unfortunately at the start, I couldn't avoid a massive shunt with a car that was completely stalled and I hit it at about 180kph and went over. I'm OK, some light pain and just thankful to walk away and be able to wake up tomorrow with nothing to worry about.”
Goethe continues to learn in his second F2 weekend
“It was a very difficult weekend with an unfortunate collision at the start of the Feature Race which ended the weekend short,” stated the 19-year-old German.
In general I was struggling a lot with the car in this particular track.
“Although the results were not there, I feel as though I have learnt a lot from this weekend and I’m more motivated than ever to turn it around for the last two races.”
