Verstappen wins rain-hit Malaysia race; Perez finishes 19th
Antonelli took second and stretched his title lead over Russell, who retired, to 84 points. Mexico's Sergio Perez started 22nd and finished 19th.
Max Verstappen won the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on Sunday at Sepang, giving Red Bull its first victory of the 2026 Formula 1 season. According to Formula1.com, he covered the 56 laps in 1:47:14.808.
Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) finished second, 2.307 seconds back, and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) was third, 4.919 seconds behind. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) was fourth and Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) fifth, after starting eighth because of a five-place grid penalty.
Rain delayed the race. The start was pushed back about 40 minutes and, on the first formation lap, several drivers reported power problems, so race control showed a red flag. The second start came with the track still damp.
Hamilton was among the drivers who chose soft tires. According to Sky Sports, that decision sent him down toward 18th place, but the safety car on lap 9 let him recover and climb back onto the podium.
George Russell (Mercedes) stopped on the main straight during the final safety car period. With second place, Antonelli, Russell's teammate, stretched his championship lead to 84 points with seven races left.
Verstappen said the win was special given the team's year:
"It's a really nice one, after the year that we've had and the progression that we've made."
For Mexican fans, Sergio Perez (Cadillac) started 22nd after dropping out in Saturday's first qualifying session and finished 19th, 29.310 seconds behind the winner. His teammate Valtteri Bottas retired after a spin that brought out the lap 9 safety car. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) was 13th.
Seven races remain, and Antonelli arrives at them leading the championship.
