Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz are being looked into after the race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz are both under investigation after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for possible rule breaks during practice starts. Hadjar, who stepped up to Red Bull’s main team for 2026 and recently came back after missing three races due to a wrist injury, along with Sainz, are being looked at for not following the rules on practice starts while heading to the grid. Sainz also got a five-place grid penalty for breaking rules during Qualifying.
Race stewards have summoned both drivers over these concerns. They noted that Sainz didn’t follow the race director’s instructions during a practice start, and Hadjar’s actions will be checked after the race finishes. Any penalties will be decided once all facts and evidence are reviewed. The final starting positions of both drivers might change after the race.
This kind of penalty isn’t new. For example, back in 2021 at Sochi, Lewis Hamilton got time penalties and points on his license for similar practice start issues. However, some of that punishment was later reduced after more details came to light.
About Sainz’s Qualifying penalty, the stewards said he tried to show he was slowing down across a yellow flag zone but didn’t reduce speed enough in each part of the yellow flag area. Because of that, he was handed a five-place grid drop. Sainz explained he thought the yellow flags wouldn’t apply anymore because the first issue had cleared, but the stewards disagreed.
Sainz qualified ninth during the race but started 14th because of the penalty. Hadjar’s final position might also change depending on the investigation. It’s been a mixed weekend for both drivers, and we’ll find out more once the race and reviews are done.