Isack Hadjar’s Formula 1 debut came to a premature end just a few corners into the formation lap, when he lost control of his Racing Bulls machine. The rookie dissolved into tears returning to the garage.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko slammed Hadjar’s reaction as “embarrassing,” but Lewis Hamilton and father Anthony both stepped forward to help bolster the young driver’s spirits.

Lewis Hamilton’s phone call to Isack Hadjar

Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar is one of six rookies making their full-season debut in Formula 1, and as part of the Red Bull junior program, the pressure was high. Hadjar would have been hoping for a strong debut weekend in Australia to solidify his seat and to prevent any mid-season replacement chatter.

And up until race day, he looked good. The hot-headed Hadjar had toned down his radio messages in practice, sharing detailed feedback with his team and analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of his own performance.

Adding to that, an 11th-place starting position in qualifying meant Hadjar was the class of the rookie field, with the five other full-season newbies lining up behind him.

That strong performance fell apart just a few corners into the formation lap. For the first time all weekend, rain saturated the Albert Park circuit, and Hadjar lost control of his car after running a tire over the slippery white paint of the street circuit. He crashed, and his debut race was over in an instant.

Hadjar was clearly distraught after he climbed from the machine; his head bowed, he kept his helmet on as he made his way back to the paddock, a sure sign that he was in tears.

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Sadly, Hadjar didn’t find much sympathy from the Red Bull camp, with advisor Helmut Marko calling his display of emotion “embarrassing.”

Thankfully, Anthony Hamilton, Lewis’ father, was on hand to comfort Hadjar in the paddock with a hug and a few comforting words.

“The thing is, as soon as I saw what happened to Isack, my heart fell and I just felt for him,” Hamilton told Canal+.

“It was just so sad to see, because I know how hard it is when these kids are eight years of age and they dream of becoming a Formula 1 race driver.

“There’s a lot of pressure all of the way up and you’re sitting on the grid for your first race and it doesn’t happen. That’s got to be the worst feeling in the world and I just felt for him.

“I just wanted to give him a hug. I felt for him like a father.”

Anthony Hamilton added to Sky Sports, “I just felt terrible for him so thought ‘You know what, I just need to go and tell this kid to keep your head high, walk tall. You’re going to come back’.

“I think he’s a phenomenal driver, I really do. There’s more to come from Isack than we probably have seen this weekend.”

However, in the pre-race press conference ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, Hadjar revealed that Anthony wasn’t the only Hamilton to offer support. Indeed, Lewis Hamilton also reached out via phone after the race.

When asked to speak more to his post-Australia conversation with Hadjar, Lewis Hamilton said, “I’d spoke to him just before, on the driver’s parade. He’s such a nice lad, you know, and I just said to him to make sure he enjoyed the race and not to put too much pressure on himself.

“And then I said, you know, take a picture, because it’s my first race with Ferrari and it’s your first race. And so he took a selfie. and then, obviously, had the off at the formation lap which I knew would be tough.

“I’ve been there. I know how painful it is, and in those moments, you feel like you’re not only disappointed in yourself, but then you feel that all eyes are on you, and everyone’s judging you.

“So I just wanted to make sure that he knew that it’s important in those moments to have people you can lean on and you can talk to. That was really what it was about.”

With the weather looking clear in China, Hadjar will have a chance to restart his Formula 1 career with a much stronger performance — one that, ideally, sees him to the checkered flag.

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