Perfect weekend plus DHL Fastest Pit Stop for Red Bull Racing in Sepang

Red Bull Racing had plenty to celebrate at the Bahrain Malaysian Grand Prix: Max Verstappen took his first victory of the 2026 season, and Red Bull Powertrains also notched up their maiden GP win as engine manufacturers in Formula 1. The race was delayed by an hour and a half due to rain and subsequent software issues.

When the lights went out, Kimi Antonelli and George Russell effortlessly stormed to the front of the field even though pole-sitter Verstappen was on the same intermediate tires. The four-time world champion was only just able to cling on to third place and hold off Liam Lawson, who also got away to a blistering start.

Verstappen overtook Russell in Turn 4 after six laps and closed the gap to Antonelli when Valtteri Bottas ran wide into the gravel at Turn 13 on lap 9. That triggered a safety car period – the perfect moment for Verstappen to switch from intermediates to slicks. His pit crew needed just 2.09 seconds for the swap, securing the DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award.

At the restart, Verstappen, now on soft tires, overtook Antonelli on the outside of Turn 1 and pulled away in the laps that followed. The second round of pit stops began on lap 29. Russell was the first to pit from the lead on lap 32. Antonelli and Verstappen followed him in on the next lap.

A virtual and then an actual safety car period then followed when Alex Albon was forced to coast to a stop with a technical problem. Verstappen opted to make a ‘cheap’ pit stop on lap 43, briefly losing the lead to Antonelli. The original running order was then restored when Mercedes decided to bring both their cars in on the next lap.

The safety car returned to the pit lane with just four laps remaining. Verstappen mastered the restart in his usual confident manner to claim victory. Red Bull Team Principal Laurent Mekies told us post race: “The first win of the season is a great way to finish what has been an extremely successful weekend overall. After showing strong pace in every session and securing our first pole position of the season yesterday, Max converted that performance into an outstanding P1 today. In often chaotic circumstances, he remained in control throughout the race, managed the conditions brilliantly, showed the strongest pace and delivered exactly the kind of performance we know he is capable of.”