FAN’S VIDEO SHOWS MOMENT SOFTWARE GLITCH SLOWED F1 CARS TO A CRAWL ON FORMATION LAP

The 2026 regulations took their first public beating when a software glitch turned the Bahrain Grand Prix formation lap into farce. Verstappen and several drivers slowed to walking pace at Sepang—power units refusing to accelerate. The FIA traced the fault to a parameter in its own code, forcing a nearly hour-long delay on top of an existing rain postponement.

Verstappen likened it to the Lego promotional race. "Same speed. It was insane," he said. Cars fanned five-wide down the straight, drivers diagnosing the problem in real time while crawling at what Verstappen called "Lego power."

The FIA blamed "an unprecedented combination of low engine speed, low-grip conditions, wet-weather energy management settings and Sepang's sector configuration"—damage control dressed as technical explanation. The 2026 power units already carry skepticism over complexity. If the software can't handle a damp out-lap, what happens when the championship tightens?