Max Verstappen won the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, Malaysia, finishing ahead of Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton. George Russell was forced to retire from the race right at the end whilst driving in third place.
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Rain and strange technical problems
Heavy rain lashed Sepang International Circuit, and the field began the formation laps 40 minutes late. First Max Verstappen, then Lewis Hamilton, reported technical problems; both were struggling with their throttle response, but, strangely enough, a further seven or eight drivers also came to a halt on the track due to electronic faults. This led to the red flag being waved.
After another one-hour interruption, the cars rolled out again, with half of the drivers having swapped their intermediate tyres for slicks. Although a few of them returned for intermediates even before the start.
The race is finally on
Kimi Antonelli and George Russell immediately overtook Verstappen, while Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris dropped to the back of the field on their slicks quickly. Verstappen overtook Russell back on lap 6, then the Safety Car came out after Valtteri Bottas spun, and almost everyone pitted for slicks.
After the restart, Verstappen took the lead and Russell also overtook Antonelli. The Italian however managed to get back in front of his team-mate on lap 21. The two Mercedes were steadily falling behind the leading Red Bull. Hamilton made his first pit stop on lap 32; the Briton had climbed up to fifth place after a dreadful start. Verstappen, Antonelli and Russell got soft tyres in the pit.
Drama at the very end
Alexander Albon’s retirement triggered a VSC and then an SC phase, with the frontrunners once again opting for a tyre change. Just before the scheduled restart, Russell’s car came to a halt at the end of the home straight due to an engine problem. At the same time, Norris slipped back to 11th place due to an unforced mistake, with the reigning World Champion nearly colliding with team-mate Oscar Piastri.
Verstappen seals victory
On lap 53, Hamilton moved up to third place by overtaking Hadjar, and Leclerc then overtook the Frenchman as well. There was no change at the front, however, with Verstappen securing his first win of the season. Antonelli and Hamilton joined him on the podium, finishing the nearly three-and-a-half-hour race. Leclerc, Hadjar and Piastri crossed the line behind them, with Liam Lawson, Fernando Alonso, Lando Norris and Arvid Lindblad also scoring points.
The full results of the race according to FIA.com:
