Sports · Motorsport · 20 mins ago
Hadjar urges Red Bull to redesign clutch after poor US Grand Prix start
Isack Hadjar wants Red Bull to redesign its clutch after another poor start, this time at the United States Grand Prix.
He dropped from third to fifth at the start and finished the race in sixth place.
Hadjar said the clutch struggled with heat and delivered too much power, despite him following the correct procedure.
He also criticised the team’s decision to put him on hard tyres for his second stint, saying poor radio reception and incorrect settings cost him time.
His teammate Max Verstappen also reported a poor start and problems with the car’s power unit and tyres; he finished third.
Verstappen said the car was not fast enough to beat race winner Kimi Antonelli, though he thought second place might have been possible.
Hadjar is calling for a clutch redesign, but no further action or timeline was given.
Isack Hadjar urged Red Bull to redesign its clutch after dropping from third to fifth at the start of the United States Grand Prix.
He blamed “clutch over-delivery” and said the clutch struggled with temperatures.
Hadjar finished sixth and also reported poor radio coverage and problems with his settings and hard tyres.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said the start-performance problem would require significant design and hardware changes that would come only next season.
- Who
- Isack Hadjar, a Red Bull driver, urged the team to redesign its clutch.
- What
- He blamed the clutch for a poor start at the United States Grand Prix.
- When
- At the 2026 United States Grand Prix; the exact race date is not stated.
- Where
- Austin, United States.
- Why
- Hadjar said the clutch was too fragile and struggled with temperatures, leading to clutch over-delivery.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Hadjar dropped from third to fifth as the race began.
Hadjar finished sixth and called for the clutch to be redesigned.
Mekies said a full fix to Red Bull’s start-performance problem would require changes expected only next season.
- Hadjar’s position change
- Third to fifth at the start
- Race finish
- Sixth
- Grand Prix
- 2026 United States Grand Prix, Austin
- Red Bull team principal
- Laurent Mekies
- Expected full fix
- Significant design and hardware changes next season
2 sources
What people are saying
The clutch needs a redesign because at the moment it’s too fragile, it’s not coping well with temperatures
I do everything perfect in terms of procedure and then I just have clutch over-delivery
it will require some significant design and hardware changes, and that this is something that we will see only next year