Max Verstappen cruised to his and Red Bull’s first win of 2026 at Sepang. Here’s how the drivers fared at the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Verstappen sealed his 72nd F1 win at Sepang after a measured performance throughout the 56-lap race on Sunday.
Max Verstappen: 10
Grid Position: P1, Race Result: P1
The Dutchman came into the race weekend at Sepang feeling Red Bull had squandered the only real chance for a win in 2026 at Baku.
But his RB22 was quick from the get-go this weekend, too. After securing his first pole of the season on Saturday, he backed it up with a stellar performance during the race on Sunday.
Granted, he didn’t get the best launch off the line, but he did get the job done by the time the chequered flag fell, first getting ahead of the Mercedes duo and then eking out a gap that would sustain till the end of the race.
A flawless performance for the Red Bull driver to grab an impressive 72nd career win.
Isack Hadjar: 7
Grid Position: P8, Race Result: P5
Back-to-back podiums for the French-Algerian racing driver after getting his Red Bull contract extended would have been exactly how Hadjar would have wanted to bounce back from his summer break injury. And that is where his Bahrain GP in Malaysia was heading.
Hadjar posted the third-fastest lap of Qualifying on Saturday but started the race from the fourth row of the grid after taking a PU-related grid penalty.
Despite this, he unlocked his RB22’s race pace and was in the right place at the right time to pick up the pieces when George Russell DNF’d from the race in the dying embers.
That said, it all unravelled for the Red Bull driver at the second Safety Car restart as he was swallowed up by the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to fall down into fifth at the chequered flag.
Kimi Antonelli: 9
Grid Position: P3, Race Result: P2
Antonelli was once again the lead Mercedes driver when it counted, this weekend at Sepang.
The Italian driver led the 56-lap race momentarily, but Verstappen’s pace was irresistible.
Nonetheless, it may have crossed Antonelli’s mind that for the remainder of the season, it isn’t about winning P1s but points to secure that maiden F1 title.
Heading to Singapore, the Mercedes driver is now 84 points clear in the fight for the 2026 F1 drivers’ crown.
George Russell: N/A
Grid Position: P7, Race Result: DNF
After a dominant performance at Baku, Russell slumped back behind Antonelli on pace this weekend.
In quite ironic circumstances, just like at Sepang in 2016 for Hamilton, an engine failure meant the Mercedes driver dropped out of the race and possibly the title fight.
Lewis Hamilton: 8.5
Grid Position: P2, Race Result: P3
Hamilton was at his best at Sepang, albeit only to the extent his SF-26 allowed him to be. He posted the second-fastest lap during Qualifying, but he was clearly lacking pace on the straights during the race.
What’s more, Ferrari’s tyre gamble at the start, fitting slick tyres for both its drivers on a relatively wet track, didn’t pay off, leading to a massive disadvantage for Hamilton.
But despite falling down the order, the seven-time World Champion embarked on a stellar recovery drive to climb all the way back up into the podium places.
Charles Leclerc: 8
Grid Position: P4, Race Result: P4
Leclerc was on damage limitation duty from the start of the 56-lap race after Ferrari’s strategy choice.
But there was pace to be extracted from his package, and he did follow his team-mate back through the pack and into a strong fourth-placed finish at the chequered flag.
Oscar Piastri: 7.5
Grid Position: P6, Race Result: P6
It was a pretty uneventful 56-lap race for Piastri in what was an otherwise chaotic event at Sepang.
By his own admission, McLaren “weren’t quick enough” to challenge the front-runners and took the chequered flag exactly where he started the GP, in sixth.
Lando Norris: 7
Grid Position: P5, Race Result: P9
Norris was in the same boat as the Ferraris in terms of strategy. And just like the duo of Hamilton and Leclerc, he lost a chunk of places at the start.
But unlike the Ferraris, Norris never had the pace to mount a recovery back into the top five.
Liam Lawson: 8.5
Grid Position: P11, Race Result: P7
The Kiwi driver got off to a brilliant start as the lights went out at Sepang. Running as high as fourth, he did have to concede to the outright pace of the leaders.
Russell’s PU gremlins helped him gain places at the second Safety Car restart, earning him a seventh-placed finish at the chequered flag.
Arvid Lindblad: 8
Grid Position: P22, Race Result: P10
The Swedish-British driver was consigned to the very back of the grid after taking engine penalties.
That said, he was in fine form during the race and was able to drag his VCARB 03 back into the points.
Fernando Alonso: 8.5
Grid Position: P12, Race Result: P8
Aston Martin’s renaissance with the b-spec AMR26, debuted at the Hungarian GP, has rejuvenated the 45-year-old.
The two-time F1 World Champion made his second Q2 appearance of 2026 on Saturday, and then drove a stellar race, fuelled by his experience.
The Spaniard made some fantastic moves during the 56-lap race, including a clinical overtake on Lindblad to score a brilliant eighth at the chequered flag.
Lance Stroll: 7
Grid Position: P14, Race Result: P12
Stroll made his first Q2 appearance of the season on Saturday, making it a maiden double Q2 visit for the Silverstone-based team under F1’s latest era.
The race, however, didn’t see the Canadian racing driver emulate his team-mate Alonso’s exploits in the sister AMR26. It was a solid drive, no doubt, but not to the full potential of the package underneath him.
Nico Hulkenberg: 7.5
Grid Position: P15, Race Result: P11
The German driver made yet another strong impression for the German marque as Audi looks to establish itself in F1’s midfield.
Despite a tough Saturday, Hulkenberg was able to drive himself into contention for the points. There were chances, but he eventually could only muster 11th at the chequered flag.
Gabriel Bortoleto: 6
Grid Position: P10, Race Result: P18
Bortoleto took his Audi back into Q3 and held a strong grid slot for the 56-lap race on Sunday.
And he did make a stellar start, running as high as ninth at the first Safety Car restart. But his avoidable incident with Carlos Sainz shortly thereafter meant he earned a 10-second time penalty, essentially ending any chances for him to finish in the top-10 at the chequered flag.
Franco Colapinto: 7.5
Grid Position: P21, Race Result: P13
The consequences of Colapinto’s Baku shunt were on display for the Argentinian driver at Sepang.
Colapinto had pace during the race, but his low grid position meant he was not able to benefit from the chaos happening around him to capitalise.
Running as high as 12th, he eventually settled for 13th on track. A solid drive from Colapinto, but one that was destined for a painful end outside the points from Baku itself.
Pierre Gasly: 5
Grid Position: P9, Race Result: P16
Gasly was one of the drivers who, despite starting from inside the top 10, plummeted down the order at the start owing to the team’s tyre choice.
The damage done, however, by incurring that early deficit was too much to quell for the Frenchman, and he was only able to take 16th at the chequered flag.
Oliver Bearman: 6.5
Grid Position: P16, Race Result: P14
Compared to his team-mate Ocon, Bearman never really had pace to threaten the midfield at Sepang.
It was pretty uneventful for the Briton for the 56 laps, and his 14th place finish was an accurate description of how he drove at the Bahrain GP in Malaysia weekend.
Esteban Ocon: 6.5
Grid Position: P17, Race Result: P15
Ocon dragged his VF-25 into the points and stayed there for the majority of the race. But despite running as high as sixth, he eventually fell to 15th at the chequered flag as late-race interruptions impeded him.
Carlos Sainz: 4.5
Grid Position: P13, Race Result: P17
Bad luck and misery for Sainz this season continued at Sepang. The Spaniard had made a stellar start to get himself into the points-paying positions at the start of the 56-lap race.
But an incident with Bortoleto at the first Safety Car restart saw him spiral down the order. Sainz was not able to recover from this deficit and eventually took the chequered flag in 17th.
Alex Albon: N/A
Grid Position: P18, Race Result: DNF
Albon made a brilliant start for Williams at Sepang, running in the points before an issue on his gearbox unfortunately ended his afternoon.
Sergio Perez: 3.5
Grid Position: P20, Race Result: P19
With his team-mate Bottas out, Cadillac’s search for its first F1 championship points was solely placed on Perez’s shoulders at Sepang.
But it wasn’t to be again for the former Red Bull driver, as he lacked pace compared to the midfield runners.
Valtteri Bottas: N/A
Grid Position: P19, Race Result: DNF
Bottas only lasted a handful of laps at Sepang on Sunday. A snap of oversteer in changeable conditions saw him beach his Cadillac in the gravel trap.
Another painful footnote in an already disappointing season for the Finnish racing driver.
READ MORE – Max Verstappen edges Mercedes out by winning wet-dry thriller at Sepang
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