Verstappen Wins Rain-Hit Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang

Max Verstappen won the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, and he did it on the day Formula 1 returned to Sepang. The Red Bull driver took his first victory of 2026 on 4 October, finishing 2.307 seconds ahead of championship leader Kimi Antonelli, with Lewis Hamilton recovering to third for Ferrari. It was Verstappen’s 72nd career win and his first since the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Fittingly, he had also been the last driver to win at Sepang, in 2017.

The race was moved from Bahrain to Malaysia because of the conflict in the Middle East, and it turned into one of the most chaotic Grands Prix of the season. Heavy rain, thunder and lightning arrived just before the start, a software problem forced the start to be abandoned, and the race began one hour and 40 minutes late. Sky Sports commentator Martin Brundle called it “one of the craziest Formula 1 races I have ever seen.”

Rain, delays and a software glitch

The race was scheduled for 8am in the UK, which was 3pm in Malaysia, but storms arrived shortly before the grid formed. After a 40-minute wait, cars completed exploratory laps behind the safety car. Then a second problem appeared: a glitch in the 2026 power unit software affected several cars on the formation lap. Hamilton briefly stopped on the back straight, and Haas and Cadillac cars also stopped.

Race control suspended the start and sent the cars back to the pit lane. The FIA issued an engine software update, describing the problem as unprecedented, and cars were restored to their original grid positions. By the time the race started, the track was drying and teams faced a difficult tyre choice. Thirteen of the 22 drivers, including both Ferraris and both McLarens, went for slicks. Verstappen and both Mercedes drivers started on intermediates.

How Verstappen won

Verstappen started from pole, his first of the season, but a slow getaway on intermediates let Antonelli and George Russell past. He passed Russell on lap six. A safety car on lap nine, after Valtteri Bottas spun his Cadillac into the gravel, reset the race, and Verstappen took the lead from Antonelli at the restart. From there he pulled away, building a gap of more than 10 seconds.

A second safety car, needed to recover Alex Albon’s stranded Williams with nine laps left, closed the field up again. Russell, running third, retired on the pit straight during that period with an apparent power unit failure. At the restart Verstappen held on, and Hamilton passed Isack Hadjar to complete the podium. Verstappen said winning in Red Bull’s first year with its own power unit was impressive.

• 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
• 2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) – +2.307s
• 3. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) – +4.919s
• 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – +7.258s
• 5. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) – +8.571s
• 6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – +9.454s
• 7. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) – +12.753s
• 8. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) – +13.372s
• 9. Lando Norris (McLaren) – +13.993s
• 10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) – +15.928s

Hamilton’s recovery and the slick-tyre gamble

Hamilton’s podium was remarkable given how his afternoon began. He started on the front row, but the throttle problem on the formation lap and Ferrari’s decision to start on slicks dropped him to the back. Once the track dried after the first safety car, he worked back through the field, using what Al Jazeera described as all his experience, and passed Hadjar at the late restart.

The slick gamble did not work for most who tried it. Piastri and both Audis pitted for intermediates on the grid lap, and Leclerc also pitted early before recovering to fourth. Lando Norris was running behind Piastri when he misjudged his braking at Turn 1 and slid into the gravel, dropping to ninth.

• Start delay: one hour and 40 minutes.
• Safety cars: two, for Bottas on lap nine and Albon late in the race.
• Retirements: Russell, Albon and Bottas.
• Race distance: 55 laps.
• Championship: Antonelli leads Russell by 84 points with seven rounds left.

What it means for the championship

Russell’s retirement was the most important result for the title. He had won in Baku a week earlier and arrived in Malaysia hoping to cut into Antonelli’s lead. Instead, Antonelli’s second place extended the gap to a season-high 84 points with seven rounds remaining, according to Sky Sports.

For Red Bull, the win was a long-awaited reward. The team has been building its own power unit for the first time in 2026, and the result suggested that its development has finally reached a competitive level. The next round was the Singapore Grand Prix a week later, which included the final sprint of the season.

Analysis: a race to remember for Sepang

For Malaysian fans, the day was a reminder of what Sepang can produce. The circuit has always been known for sudden tropical storms, and this race delivered exactly that kind of drama: delays, tyre gambles, safety cars and a winner who had last won there nine years earlier.

The day was also significant for the wider grid. Isack Hadjar’s fifth place gave Red Bull a strong double score, while Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad both finished in the points for Racing Bulls. Fernando Alonso brought his Aston Martin home in eighth, a valuable result in a season of limited opportunities for the team.

With only 15.9 seconds covering the top ten at the finish, the late safety car turned the closing laps into a sprint. That compressed result shows how much the restart mattered, and how well Verstappen managed the final run to the flag while Antonelli tried to find a way past.

The software problem raised serious questions for the FIA, and the governing body promised a full review. But on track, the race was a classic. Verstappen’s control after the first restart, Hamilton’s recovery and Russell’s late heartbreak gave the Sepang crowd a Grand Prix they will remember, even if it carried the name of another country.

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