Verstappen wins maiden 2026 race in chaotic Bahrain GP in Malaysia as Russell retires

Selangor (Malaysia): Red Bull's Max Verstappen won a chaotic Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia for his maiden victory of the season at the Sepang International Circuit here on Sunday.

Verstappen, who started from pole, took the win by 2.307s ahead of title leader Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes, while Lewis Hamilton in his Ferrari secured a brilliant third after a massive drop in positions at the start.

Meanwhile, George Russell's championship fight took a major blow when he was forced to retire his Mercedes late in the race due to a power unit issue. He was running third behind partner Antonelli and leader Verstappen but parked his W17 on the main straights as the safety car was still on for Alex Albon's retirement.

This hit a major blow to his title chances, as the British driver has now lost the gap with Antonelli from 66 points to 84 after the race. The young Italian now sits on 320 points, while Russell stays put on 236, with Hamilton gaining 15 points for his third-placed finish and now having 214 points.

It was a chaotic race, already delayed due to heavy weather as the drivers hopped their tyres from intermediate to slicks. The start was delayed by an hour and 33 minutes and saw drivers changing tyres when Valtteri Bottas and Albon retired as the safety cars were called upon.

Verstappen had dropped back from first place on the grid to third at the first standing start after Anotelli and Russell passed him and Hamilton, but the Dutch driver recovered well to take the first position. This was his first win of the season and his 72nd for Red Bull, equalling Michael Schumacher's 72-win record for Ferrari. Hamilton holds the record for most wins with a team, as he has 84 wins with Mercedes.

Hamilton and Leclerc had dropped way behind after the standing start and to the final few positions. But the strategic pit stops and a strong race helped him secure third and fourth place in the race after a late overtake on Red Bull's Isack Hadjar. Oscar Piastri took fifth in his McLaren, while Liam Lawson was seventh in Racing Bulls.

Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso fended off McLaren's Lando Norris for the eighth position as Arvid Lindblad of the other Racing Bulls took the 10th spot.

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