“The car was very fast but hard to drive,” claims Hadjar after his turbulent Montreal race

Red Bull left the Canadian Grand Prix with a sense of renewed momentum after Max Verstappen secured the team’s first podium of the season and Isack Hadjar delivered a gritty drive to fifth place despite a difficult and penalty‑filled afternoon.

Verstappen produced one of his strongest races of the year, chasing down Lewis Hamilton and overtaking him on merit before later losing the position again to the Ferrari.

Even as his tyre temperatures dropped in the closing laps, Verstappen stayed within half a second of Hamilton at the finish. His third‑place result marked Red Bull’s first podium with their own power unit and signalled clear progress after a mixed start to the season.

Hadjar, meanwhile, faced a far more complicated race. The French rookie picked up two penalties — one for moving under braking in a battle with Charles Leclerc, and another for a yellow‑flag infringement. Despite losing around 30 seconds of race time as a result, he still managed to hold onto fifth place at the chequered flag, underlining both his pace and his resilience.

After the race, Hadjar reflected honestly on a challenging but ultimately rewarding afternoon. He said: “I started off with a very good launch but struggled a lot with pace during the race.

"The car was very fast but hard to drive compared to yesterday when I felt more comfortable, so I couldn’t push as hard as I wanted.”

Hadjar believed a stronger result was possible without the setbacks: “I think we could have secured fourth place, but had to settle for fifth in the end.”

Despite the difficulties, he emphasised the team’s progress: “The overall car performance this weekend was very positive – we took a big step forward since Miami and made the most of the weekend. I hope we can keep the same momentum for Monaco.”