Max Verstappen slammed Formula 1’s engine regulations following a rain‑hit Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, which turned the formation lap into a chaotic scramble of power unit failures he likened to “LEGO” when software glitches erupted.
The rain‑muddied quickstart
Heavy rainfall on the Sepang track triggered an unprecedented combination of low engine speed, low grip, wet‑weather energy management and the circuit’s sector layout. A number of cars lost power during the formation lap, leaving drivers baffled and the first‑corner line used to be five‑wide.
Software stutter revealed
Verstappen explained the problem as a software‑driven “bog‑down” when the throttle drops to low rpm. The glitch would normally resolve in one or two seconds, but the first software patch failed to trigger correctly, only improving when the second round was applied. “It’s like the power is playing a game of LEGO,” he quipped, describing the confusion while looking at his mirrors.
FIA’s remedial release
The FIA issued a statement that it identified an “unintended loss of power” for several cars. It removed the energy limit constraint in the affected sectors via an updated software release to all teams during the rain‑induced race delay, allowing power‑unit adjustments before the start line.
Red Bull’s victory amid sabotage
Despite the engine troubles, Verstappen secured his 72nd career Grand Prix win, the first for Red Bull’s in‑house powertrain project. He noted that the later software round prevented him from being caught in the same start‑line collapse that had affected him earlier in the season.
Impact on the championship and future regulations
Verstappen’s criticism shows mounting frustration with the complexity of 2026 power units. The incident will spark a full review involving teams, power‑unit manufacturers and the FIA, as the sport seeks to balance technical sophistication with reliability in unpredictable weather conditions.
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