Hadjar keeps Baku podium as FIA settles for a warning
Isack Hadjar has kept his third-place finish at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. FIA stewards summoned him over an alleged breach of reconnaissance-lap procedure before the race, but ultimately issued a warning rather than a driving reprimand. Carlos Sainz, investigated over the same procedure, also received only a warning, preserving his 10th place and first points since Monaco for Williams. For Hadjar, who missed three races with a wrist injury, keeping the podium on his comeback weekend carried extra weight.
What happened
During the reconnaissance lap before the race, Hadjar had intended to perform a practice start but aborted the attempt late, then failed to cross the pit-exit white line at the earliest opportunity to rejoin the normal racing line as instructed by the race director, instead remaining on the pit-exit road. Sainz was summoned for a similar failure to cross the white line in time during the same reconnaissance-lap procedure. Both were investigated for a potential breach of Article 12.2.1.i of the International Sporting Code.
Why a warning, not a penalty
Stewards accepted as a mitigating factor that Hadjar had been distracted after aborting his planned practice start at the last moment, and issued a warning instead of a reprimand. In Sainz's case, stewards found that Williams had given him incorrect instructions which he simply followed, a factor they called 'significant' in reducing his personal responsibility. As a result, both Hadjar's third place and Sainz's 10th place stood unchanged. Separately, Gabriel Bortoleto, investigated the same day for overtaking under yellow flags, received a harsher outcome: a 10-second time penalty that dropped him from 13th to 15th.
Six weeks out, and a 'first real' podium
Hadjar missed the Zandvoort, Monza and Madrid rounds with a wrist injury sustained in summer training. He described the layoff as 'a very long six weeks... it's been like six weeks since I enjoyed myself.' In Baku he said the wrist held up over the 51-lap race distance despite some numbness. He called this result his 'first proper podium on pure pace,' distinguishing it from his two previous podiums, which came via other drivers' retirements or penalties.