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Kimi Antonelli set the pace for Mercedes in final practice at Sepang, posting a 1:36.302 lap that put him 0.278 seconds clear of Max Verstappen. Mercedes had struggled on Friday before overnight work improved the car, and Antonelli briefly lost the top spot to Isack Hadjar before reclaiming it. The session was stopped for eight minutes after debris came off Oliver Bearman’s Haas, while the track stayed dry after earlier rain concerns.

The race was a different story, with rain delaying the start by about 100 minutes and an apparent software glitch affecting several cars on the formation lap. Verstappen, who had started from pole, took his first F1 win of the 2026 season and the 72nd victory of his career after a race shaped by changing tire calls, safety cars and a late safety car. Antonelli, who started third and briefly led at the start, fought at the front before Verstappen retook control and won by 2.307 seconds.

Antonelli finished second and said Mercedes had extracted the maximum from the W17. Lewis Hamilton recovered to finish third for Ferrari, Charles Leclerc was fourth, and George Russell’s late power-unit problem ended Mercedes’ challenge and helped Antonelli extend his championship lead by 18 points to 84 heading to Singapore.

The Bahrain Grand Prix was staged at Sepang in Malaysia after unrest in the Middle East earlier in the year forced the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian races to be moved. Max Verstappen arrived as the pole-sitter after edging Lewis Hamilton by 0.298 seconds in qualifying, with Kimi Antonelli promoted to third on the grid after Isack Hadjar received a five-place penalty. Hamilton’s qualifying run gave him his first front-row start since his win in Barcelona in June.

Antonelli had set the pace in final practice with a lap of 1:36.302 in his upgraded Mercedes, ahead of Verstappen and Hadjar. George Russell, Charles Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri filled the next places in practice, while a brief red flag interrupted the session after debris from Oliver Bearman’s Haas was found on track. Tyre wear was a major concern at Sepang because of the rough surface and the hot, humid conditions.

Heavy rain then delayed the race by more than three hours and forced a suspension on the formation laps. Verstappen, Hamilton and other drivers reported throttle and acceleration problems before the race resumed, and the field returned to the pits before the original grid order was restored. Verstappen moved from third to the lead after racing began and went on to win, with Antonelli second and Hamilton third. Charles Leclerc finished fourth, Hadjar fifth, Oscar Piastri sixth, Liam Lawson seventh, Fernando Alonso eighth, Lando Norris ninth and Arvid Lindblad tenth. George Russell, Alex Albon and Valtteri Bottas did not finish.

Heavy rain delayed the start of the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang in Malaysia on Sunday, with the downpour arriving about 40 minutes before the scheduled start and lightning reported in the area. The FIA said the F1 race would not begin until at least 10 minutes after any restart announcement. Forecasts suggested the rain cell would move on and Malaysia’s heat could dry the track quickly once the rain stopped, but Max Verstappen of Red Bull said from the grid that new rain cells were appearing and described the situation as a big deal. The weekend was also in uncharted wet-weather territory for F1 because there had been no collective wet session yet.

Verstappen had already set the tone by taking pole position with a 1:35.130 lap, his first pole of the season and his first since the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari qualified second, 0.298 seconds back, and Kimi Antonelli was promoted to third after Isack Hadjar received a five-place grid penalty for using a new internal combustion engine outside his allocation. Charles Leclerc lined up fourth, followed by Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri and George Russell, while Hadjar dropped to eighth and Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad were sent to the back by penalties. The race returned to Sepang for the first time since 2017 after being moved from Bahrain because of the war in Iran, and it was not officially counted as a Malaysian Grand Prix. Officials declared a heat hazard because of the expected heat and humidity, with haze and possible storms adding to the challenge. Teams expected tire wear, cooling and strategy to shape the 56-lap race, with a two-stop plan seen as the likeliest option. Antonelli led the championship by 66 points after a difficult Baku weekend, and Mercedes also brought a major upgrade package to Sepang after Antonelli topped final practice, Verstappen led first practice and Leclerc led second practice.