Isack Hadjar made headlines on his Formula 1 debut by failing to start his first race for Racing Bulls.
Conditions couldn’t have been more difficult for every rookie at the Australian Grand Prix and were reminiscent of last year’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Lance Stroll spun off the track on the formation lap in Brazil last season and Hadjar was the unfortunate driver who didn’t return to the grid in Melbourne.
Ted Kravitz spotted Hadjar looking nervous before the race but that shouldn’t come as a surprise given years of hard work and sacrifice had led to that moment on the F1 grid for the first time.
Racing Bulls should have scored decent points through Yuki Tsunoda but failing to bring him in for intermediate tyres at the end of the race saw him slip out of the top 10.
At least he finished the race though which is more than can be said about some of his rivals.
Plenty of rookies found the conditions too difficult to handle but Fernando Alonso and new Williams driver Carlos Sainz proved that even with years of experience, mistakes can happen.
READ MORE: Williams star Carlos Sainz’s life outside F1 from full name, girlfriend and height
Ralf Schumacher says Carlos Sainz should have been crying after the Australian Grand Prix
F1 race winner and former Williams driver Ralf Schumacher was speaking on the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast after the race in Melbourne.
Schumacher was talking about Hadjar’s DNS in Melbourne and said: “You have to understand that he’s disappointed, everyone deals with it a little differently.
“Personally, I probably wouldn’t have cried, I would have been more annoyed with myself and I would have expressed that differently, but you still have to let everyone have their emotions.
“I think Helmut Marko sometimes has a toughness that isn’t necessary and I don’t think he means it in that way, but he’s just like that, he says what’s on the tip of his tongue.
“You don’t have to say out loud that he’s embarrassed that he’s crying, more or less, but maybe you should ask why that is sometimes the case.
“I mean, Carlos Sainz, he could have come back crying! It is actually a bit embarrassing, you have to be honest.
“Embarrassing is perhaps a difficult expression, but I mean it happened to me too, David Coulthard as well, other drivers too, a moment of carelessness.
“It was so slippery and it suddenly happened, so nobody could absolve themselves of that.”
READ MORE: All to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes ties
Carlos Sainz helped Alex Albon secure a brilliant Williams result in Melbourne
Sainz blamed his crash in Australia on a torque surge when preparing to follow the safety car after Jack Doohan’s crash.
He lost control heading into the final corner and slid along the barriers bringing his fifth debut with a different Formula 1 team to an end.
📻 “I’m OK”
An extraordinary start to the season with Williams’ Carlos Sainz spinning into the barrier 🔄#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/cCYQ5z3g7W
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 16, 2025
However, that wasn’t his final contribution to Williams’ cause with teammate Alex Albon in a very strong position.
Sainz helped guide Williams on Albon’s strategy, telling them when he needed to pit once the rain started again at the end of the race.
His experience on the track – which albeit was a short one – earned Albon an important P5 finish that sees the team sit fourth in the constructors’ championship.
James Vowles didn’t believe what Sainz said about sitting on the Williams pit wall but will at least be glad that he can rely on the Spaniard to contribute if he ever retires from a race early again this season.
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