Isack Hadjar suffered a humiliating moment during a Red Bull demo run in Tokyo just days before the start of the Japanese Grand Prix. The young Frenchman has endured a mixed start to his F1 career, making arguably the worst debut in history at the season opener in Australia. He was caught out at the very first corner during the formation lap, losing rear traction and sliding into the wall.

After jumping out of the car, Hadjar was visibly distraught and began to cry in full view of the TV cameras. It prompted a furious response from Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, who branded his reaction an ‘embarrassing, tearful show‘. A week later, the 20-year-old made amends with an impressive display at the Chinese Grand Prix.

He qualified in seventh place, beating Racing Bulls team-mate Yuki Tsunoda by half a second. Hadjar’s race pace was also strong, but his team’s poor strategy saw him finish outside the points.

Just when his fortunes were starting to improve, things took another turn during a special event in Tokyo on Wednesday. The drivers from Red Bull and Racing Bulls took to the city streets for a demo run in front of the Japanese public.

The course featured a tricky hairpin, which Hadjar struggled to navigate when it was his turn behind the wheel. As he entered the corner, his car rotated too early and hit the kerb. The impact, while at slow speed, caused damage to the front wing.

It was certainly not the ideal start to Hadjar’s weekend, but there is still plenty of time for him to turn things around. He will be hoping to stay in Red Bull‘s good books by keeping his car on track and steering clear of any further mishaps at Suzuka.

Hadjar received high praise from Marko following his improved display in China a fortnight ago, with the 81-year-old saying: “Isack Hadjar managed his mishap in Melbourne well, even though he had already been surprisingly strong in qualifying.

“He would certainly have scored his first points in China without this failed strategy. For me, Isack is one of the surprises of this first part of the season. He didn’t know the Shanghai circuit, yet he drove at the same level as Yuki, which I think is very impressive.”

Hadjar will have a new team-mate this weekend, with Liam Lawson returning to Racing Bulls after just two races at Red Bull. He was brutally axed by the senior team last week, a decision which is believed to have upset Max Verstappen.