diff --git a/mt792x_core.c b/mt792x_core.c
index cc488ee94..b82e4470c 100644
--- a/mt792x_core.c
+++ b/mt792x_core.c
@@ -927,6 +927,20 @@ int mt792x_load_firmware(struct mt792x_dev *dev)
 {
 	int ret;
 
+	/* Release semaphore if taken by previous failed load attempt.
+	 * This prevents "Failed to get patch semaphore" errors when
+	 * recovering from firmware crashes or suspend/resume failures.
+	 */
+	ret = mt76_connac_mcu_patch_sem_ctrl(&dev->mt76, false);
+	if (ret < 0)
+		dev_dbg(dev->mt76.dev, "Semaphore release returned %d (may be expected)\n", ret);
+
+	/* Always restart MCU to ensure clean state before loading firmware */
+	mt76_connac_mcu_restart(&dev->mt76);
+
+	/* Wait for MCU to be ready after restart */
+	msleep(100);
+
 	ret = mt76_connac2_load_patch(&dev->mt76, mt792x_patch_name(dev));
 	if (ret)
 		return ret;