Software bug caused power-loss chaos and delayed F1 start in Malaysia

The start procedure for the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang was thrown into chaos when several cars lost power while circulating slowly on formation laps behind the safety car in wet conditions. Max Verstappen was reported as the first to be affected, Lewis Hamilton later stopped, and other cars were also hit, prompting race control to abandon the start attempt and red-flag the session.

Multiple reports said the cause was an FIA software bug rather than a team-specific mechanical problem. Nikolas Tombazis said a "perfect storm" of conditions triggered the failure, and later explanations from several outlets described an emergency fix that was implemented before the race could continue.

Drivers reacted angrily to the disruption, calling it unacceptable and saying Formula 1 needed to examine what had happened. Hamilton and Verstappen were among those who described the strange low-power behavior in bemused terms, with comparisons to a "Lego race," while coverage also debated whether it would have been fair to penalise affected cars given the nature of the problem.