F1 Full Results | Max Verstappen wins chaotic Bahrain GP in Malaysia

Due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, fan favourite Sepang stepped in to host the Bahrain GP, originally scheduled for April, and has not disappointed in drama after nine years off the calendar.

As heavy rain pounded the track in the 30 minutes prior to the race, the Grand Prix was unsurprisingly delayed, with Sepang known for its extreme and ever-changing conditions. Famously, in 2009 the race was abandoned after 33 of 56 laps, with Brawn GP's Jenson Button taking a half-point win on that occasion.

After 40 minutes, cars were making their way around, but the starting procedure had to be suspended after complete chaos under the formation lap, with the Red Flag brought out.

Hamilton, Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas - each powered by Ferrari engines - had all stopped on track with suspected power unit troubles. Although Hamilton had been overtaken - and others lapped - amid his issues, the race got underway with the original starting grid.

And the chaos did not stop there, with the grid split between intermediate and slick tyres at race start. Hamilton, alongside those to take a gamble on slicks, once again fell to the back of the grid immediately, as Mercedes powered into the lead. Antonelli and Russell blasted to P1 and P2, respectively, ahead of Verstappen.

The Dutchman took little time to regain P2 from Russell, and was right behind Antonelli amid a Lap 9 Safety Car caused by Bottas' trip into the gravel. Upon the restart, a fantastic move from the four-time champion at the Turn 1 and 2 sequence saw him regain his lead.

Russell gained P2 from his teammate upon the restart, but on Lap 22, Antonelli was back ahead of the Briton. Verstappen, however, was now in the distance, building a gap of over eight seconds by halfway.

Hamilton, meanwhile, charged through the midfield in impressive fashion as he aimed to recover from Ferrari's catastrophic tyre blunder. After pushing back on Ferrari's calls to pit after the slow start, the Briton had made his way up to P5 by Lap 28 on older soft tyres.

More drama ensued after the Safety Car was brought out with nine laps remaining with Williams' Alex Albon suffering a gearbox issue. Russell was out of this race, stopping on the side of the track under the Safety Car after a suspected power unit failure.

A final five-lap showdown saw Verstappen blast into the distance from Antonelli, while Hamilton completed a remarkable recovery drive to take the final podium place from Red Bull's Hadjar.

Elsewhere, Aston Martin have secured their third points finish of the 2026 season after Fernando Alonso's impressive P8 finish, having started outside of the points positions in P12.