F1 Grid Reacts to the FIA Software Glitch in Malaysia

The 2026 F1 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia was a solid race that saw drivers navigate through changing weather conditions. However, a software glitch in the cars almost ended the race before it got going.

On Sunday's race, a bug in the FIA's shared power unit software left cars stalling on the wet formation lap, which aborted the first start attempt. 

FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said that the software wasn't "tested extensively on wet conditions." The cars bunched up, moving at extremely low speed, behind the Safety Car in the first formation lap. These circumstances could have caused the software bug, forcing the FIA to issue a red flag to work on the software deployment.

What came next was a very long delay and a long line of unhappy people in the grid.

Max Verstappen claimed his first pole of the year on Saturday, which he converted into his first win of 2026 on Sunday. But the software error left the four-time World Champion unhappy, comparing the experience to a "Lego race."

Verstappen: "These engines are so complicated and a lot of software is implemented. It was insane. Like, it's the Lego power. At some point, we were five-wide on the straight because we couldn't understand what was going on."

Lewis Hamilton dropped tons of places due to a tyre strategy error at the first restart, but he fought back from P18 to a spectacular P3 finish in Sepang. 

Through seven World Championships and almost two decades of racing in F1, Hamilton said that Sunday's software glitch was something he hasn't experienced before.

Hamilton: "I had to stop on track and stop the car and engine and restart it. I've never done that before. I hope there is a lesson learned."

Prior to the Bahrain GP in Malaysia, Checo Perez already expressed his frustration about the current generation of F1 cars. The seasoned driver said that he "fears something bad will happen soon."

True enough, Perez's fears happened on Sunday. 

Perez: "It felt like you were in a rental kart and you ran out of time. You were putting your foot down and accelerating, and nothing was coming. I'm sure we will learn from it as a sport. But what happened today is totally unacceptable for the sport."

Haas left Sepang disappointed, with both drivers finishing P14 (Oliver Bearman) and P15 (Esteban Ocon). Bearman's reaction to the software error was probably the most technically revealing. The young British driver was surprised to find out that the FIA could actually control their throttle pedal.

Bearman: "I didn't even know that the FIA could control our throttle pedal. That was quite scary, actually."

Fernando Alonso came through with Aston Martin's best haul of points this season, crossing the finish line in P8. The two-time World Champion did call out the software glitch, saying that there's "too much technology", which F1 fans don't appreciate.

But Alonso also doubled down on the fact that Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton wasn't forced to retire after stopping in the gravel during the formation lap. The Aston Martin rued the unfairness of the decision, saying that he thinks Hamilton should be out of the race.

Alonso: "I've had retirements in the middle of races this year, and the race was never stopped because we retired. But it seems that Hamilton was in the gravel and there was stress. They had to stop the race so he could rejoin. It's all been a bit weird."

After scoring points in Baku, Carlos Sainz Jr. failed to bring Williams to another points finish, especially after colliding with Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto. Sainz also mirrored the sentiment of his fellow drivers, hinting that the FIA's decision to go down this route five years ago was the wrong one.

Sainz: "It is clear the regulations are extremely complicated for the drivers, for the teams, for the power units, and for the manufacturers. Who decided five years ago that this was the direction to go? Clearly, what was decided four or five years ago was wrong. We need to learn as a sport not to make those mistakes again."

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies gave his drivers contract extensions, and they have repaid him with exceptional results as of late. They scored 35 points as a team in Sepang, with Verstappen winning the race and Isack Hadjar finishing in fifth place.

However, their success in Sepang didn't completely overshadow Mekies's disappointment on the software bug. He also hinted that the FIA hasn't been in control of the "complexity" of the current generation of F1 cars. 

Mekies: "It's a good reminder for all of us that we should probably make sure that complexity doesn't get out of hand and that we keep things as under control as possible."

During the stoppage in Sepang, the FIA distributed to teams a software update that removed the energy-limit constraint in the affected sectors. It was loaded into the cars before the restart, and it seemed like it worked for the remainder of the race.

A software fix could be the fastest route, but the FIA has bigger-picture problems to address. Throughout the year, the drivers and teams expressed their unhappiness about the technical rules and the power unit design. 

The FIA did agree on some changes for the 2027 and 2028 power unit regulations, but as Sainz mentioned, this wasn't the right direction for the sport.