FIA reveals what triggered Bahrain GP software chaos and lengthy delay
Photo: Race Pictures
Tobia is a Formula 1 journalist at GPblog with experience at international circuits. Since 2022, he has covered Grands Prix across Europe, delivering reliable coverage and insights from the paddock.
FIA Single-Seater Director Nikolas Tombazis explained why race control took several minutes before deciding on a new starting procedure following the software chaos that unfolded during the formation laps of the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The start of the Bahrain Grand Prix was thrown into chaos when several drivers encountered software-related problems during the formation laps. Lewis Hamilton was among those affected, briefly coming to a halt after being unable to accelerate before eventually getting going again following a software reset.
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc experienced a similar issue but managed to continue without stopping, while Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas also came to a halt before eventually restarting.
With several cars affected and the starting procedure disrupted, race control suspended the process and delayed the start while the situation was assessed. The cars were subsequently directed through the pit lane before returning to the circuit, with officials taking several minutes to determine how the Grand Prix could safely get under way and establish a new starting procedure.
Photo: Race Pictures
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FIA sheds light on software issue that disrupted formation lap
Speaking to GPblog and other media after the race, Tombazis explained that software bugs are not necessarily caused by overly complex systems and can sometimes simply result from an oversight. He acknowledged that the software had not been tested as extensively as the FIA would have liked, largely because of the limited amount of wet running this season, with a combination of circumstances ultimately triggering the problem.
The issue emerged during the formation laps when several cars slowed dramatically, creating a concertina effect that left some drivers almost at a complete standstill. The software bug then prevented power from being redeployed, leaving some cars unable to accelerate again. Tombazis admitted that more testing would probably have allowed the FIA to identify the problem before the race.
Once the issue became apparent, the FIA quickly identified what was happening and began working under significant time pressure on a software update. The update then had to be distributed to the teams and installed on the cars before the starting procedure could resume.
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"Bugs in software are not always caused by something being too difficult. There's sometimes an oversight. That's why software gets tested much more extensively. We didn't manage to test the software as extensively as we would have liked because it was, there's been very little wet running this year, and there was a bit of a combination of circumstances which caused this bug to kick in.
"Basically, the formation laps, some cars went very slowly, almost came to a standstill. There was a bit of a concertina effect between cars, and some cars almost stopped completely. And that bug prevented the power to be redeployed and for the cars to start again.
"I think if we had had a bit more testing, we probably would have managed to catch it in time and not have such a situation. Once the problem happened, our guys realised very quickly what was happening and had to work under a lot of time pressure for an update to the software which was issued to the teams and the teams had to install it on their cars.
"All of that took about 20 minutes. It may have felt like five hours for spectators waiting a race and for everybody else, which is understandable and we are sorry about that. But I think it was quite a fast reaction given the problem."
Finally, explaining what triggered the bug, Tombazis added: “In some sectors the full power is reduced, and the triggering factor was some cars reaching a very low speed. I don't know exactly what speed that was, but some cars reaching this very low speed somehow entered into a loop which meant they couldn't re-accelerate. And then it looked as if they came to a stop.”
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