Piastri and Hadjar Shine at Zandvoort, Norris and Ferrari Face Setbacks
There was one Italian team that captured our attention at the Dutch Grand Prix, and it was not Ferrari. Its name sounds almost surreal, easily forgotten, and offers no immediate recognition: Racing Bulls, the historic continuation of Minardi. Its main base is in Faenza, where around 600 people work, yet part of its soul resides in the United Kingdom because the team is owned by Red Bull. The driver who brought them onto the third step of the podium after an exceptional race was 21-year-old French-Algerian rookie Isack Hadjar, the son of a renowned physicist in Paris, making his F1 debut this year.
Hadjar sparked a warm and passionate enthusiasm at the end of a Dutch Grand Prix dominated by McLaren. But it was a one-car dominance, as Lando Norris had to retire seven laps from the finish due to a mechanical failure. At that moment, he was only 1.3 seconds behind teammate Oscar Piastri and, while victory was out of reach, he would have secured valuable points. Instead, he now finds himself 34 points behind Piastri, making any comeback extremely challenging. Piastri, meanwhile, launched perfectly from the start, taking the lead with confidence even during the three Safety Car restarts. The Australian showed himself as a calm, precise, and analytical champion, reminiscent of Niki Lauda in his early days at Ferrari. Norris tried repeatedly to close in on Piastri, but every attempt failed. While Piastri’s starting position was decisive, it also highlighted his exceptional skill, unyielding in key moments that determine races.
Is the championship over? Not yet. With nine races remaining, anything can happen. Nevertheless, Zandvoort clearly demonstrated McLaren’s superiority, capable of pulling away even from a hungry Max Verstappen, who twice gambled with Soft Pirelli tires while the “orange” cars ran Mediums at the start and Hards at the end. Against such a machine, there was little chance of success.
For Ferrari, the Netherlands proved bittersweet. While their performance showed some promise, modest qualifying positions limited their potential. Charles Leclerc executed a masterful overtake on George Russell at the third corner and later pulled off an extraordinary maneuver on the same Mercedes driver around mid-race. He pushed hard, took risks, and slightly exceeded track limits, but produced a move that will be remembered. Maneuvers of such courage cannot be penalized, as doing so would strip away the essence of Formula 1, leaving spectators to rely on cinematic recreations for thrilling overtakes. Unfortunately, Charles Leclerc’s race ended after a collision with Kimi Antonelli, who was battling him for fifth place and also crashed into the barriers. Still, Charles delivered an impressive performance at Zandvoort, which is especially striking considering that only months ago, some within Ferrari believed Lewis Hamilton would be the 2025 reference point.
Lewis Hamilton had a decent run at Zandvoort but made a somewhat naive error after only 22 laps, crashing into the guardrail and shocking everyone. In that moment, he was seventh, 23 seconds behind Piastri, chasing Russell as well. It was a bitter day for Ferrari, but the upcoming Italian Grand Prix at Monza offers an opportunity to turn the page—if the team can seize it.
