This was Verstappen’s priceless reaction to Bahrain GP software chaos

The four-time world champion was quick to react when software problems began affecting several cars during the formation lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix, eventually forcing the start procedure to be aborted. In an untelevised team radio exchange with his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, the Dutchman commented on the unusual scenes unfolding around him as drivers struggled with the issues before the start.

“LoL, look at this,” Verstappen said over the radio after noticing the problems affecting the cars around him. The Dutchman appeared surprised by the scenes on the formation lap, reacting directly to Lambiase as the software issues continued to disrupt the field ahead of the start.

Lewis Hamilton was among the biggest names affected by the software problems. The Briton was even forced to bring his car to a halt, switch it off and restart it in order to complete a reset. Fortunately for him, he was able to get going again and was subsequently permitted to retake his position in the second grid slot.

The race eventually went ahead without further issues after the FIA confirmed that the bug had been resolved and provided the teams with a software update. From that point onwards, the Grand Prix ran as normal, with Verstappen ultimately taking his first victory of the season and the 72nd win of his Formula 1 career.

He may have celebrated his first win of the season last weekend, but his success has not changed his view on the direction Formula 1 should take in the future. The four-time world champion would favour a move back towards V8 power units, believing they could address several of the shortcomings he sees in the current generation of machinery.

For Verstappen, the benefits would extend beyond the sound or spectacle traditionally associated with combustion engines. He believes V8-powered cars could be lighter, easier to drive and ultimately more enjoyable for drivers to race. However, his proposal would not mean removing the electrical element from Formula 1 altogether.

Instead, Verstappen would retain a significantly smaller battery and use its energy to provide drivers with a temporary performance boost. Such a system could replace DRS, with the Dutchman arguing that the extra power should help a driver get into a position to attack without making an overtake virtually automatic. The final move would therefore still need to be completed by the driver, particularly under braking.

Although Verstappen has also expressed his preference for V10 engines, he accepts that a V8 would represent a more achievable solution for modern Formula 1.