Toronto Star
· collected 2026-10-04 · by James Ellingworth The Associated Press
Max Verstappen expressed frustration over delays during the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang due to software issues that prevented cars from properly functioning on a wet track. After initial attempts to start the race failed, there was an additional delay of almost an hour as teams worked to update their car’s software to handle slippery conditions better. The incident highlights ongoing challenges with the new 2026-specification cars and their reliance on complex algorithms for power deployment in varying weather conditions.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Max Verstappen said he wants “a lesson learned” after Formula 1 drivers and fans were left waiting for software updates because the cars’ algorithms weren’t able to handle a wet track.
asserted
algorithms → say → track
The first attempt to start Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia ended in confusion as cars crawled around the Sepang track at slow speeds or stopped entirely as drivers and teams tried to restart their systems.
asserted
drivers → start → systems
There was another delay of almost an hour while, Verstappen said, teams were trying to update the software to handle slippery conditions.
asserted
teams → be → conditions
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton likened it to gimmicky pre-race exhibitions in Lego cars the drivers have done previously as part of a sponsorship tie-ins.
asserted
drivers → liken → ins
“It was like the Lego race,” Hamilton said.
asserted
Hamilton → say → race
The on-board algorithms that decide how and when to deploy the car’s electrical hybrid power were seemingly thwarted by the drivers using less acceleration than usual to deal with the slippery conditions.
asserted
that → decide → conditions
“It’s not what you want in the sport,” said Verstappen, who eventually won.
asserted
who → ’ → sport
“I hope there is a lesson learned.”
asserted
I → hope → ?
The rain delay becomes the laptop delay
F1 hadn’t raced in the rain all year and fans were keen to see how the drivers and the 2026-specification cars — with a near 50-50 split between engine and battery power — handled the conditions.
asserted
drivers → become → conditions
After an initial delay because of a storm, drivers were meant to do two formation laps behind the safety car to scout out the conditions before getting under way.
asserted
drivers → mean → way
However, several cars lacked power and some stopped entirely.
asserted
some → lack → power
“When you go too low in speed... for whatever reason, then it just bogs down,” Verstappen said, recalling the car going at 35 kph (22 mph) and still losing speed on one uphill stretch.
asserted
Verstappen → go → stretch
With overtaking not normally allowed on a formation lap, third-place Kimi Antonelli waited behind Lewis Hamilton’s slow-moving Ferrari as the Italian team scrambled to solve a software issue.
asserted
team → allow → issue
“I’m pressing the throttle and nothing’s happening,” Hamilton told Ferrari.
asserted
Hamilton → press → Ferrari
He then stopped on track to restart the systems.
asserted
He → stop → systems
With more problems elsewhere in the field, soon cars were scattered all around the Sepang track.
asserted
cars → scatter → track
The safety car and Verstappen even seemed to lap some of them.
asserted
car → seem → them
Eventually, the start was suspended again.
asserted
start → suspend → ?
The mixed-up order meant teams resorted to pushing their cars into the correct sequence in the pit lane.
asserted
teams → mix → lane
The delay “was because they had to update the software, and then you have to load it into the car.
asserted
you → have → car
I guess some had some faster laptops than others,” Verstappen joked.
asserted
Verstappen → guess → others
By the time they were done, the track was much drier and there were only a few laps of wet-weather action before a largely dry race.
asserted
track → do → race
Software problems have caused disruption before
asserted
problems → cause → disruption
This was the first wet-weather race of the year but it’s not the first time software has caused headaches this season.
asserted
software → ’ → headaches
George Russell blamed the code governing the cars’ electrical systems for his lack of pace at the Belgian Grand Prix before crashing out.
asserted
Russell → blame → Prix
F1’s embrace of electrical power for 2026 comes with complex software that governs how and when that power is used.
asserted
power → come → software
In most on-track situations, the electrical power isn’t directly related to the driver’s use of the gas pedal.
asserted
power → relate → pedal
So-called “deployment maps” set out how much energy to release based on where the car is on the track.
asserted
car → call → track
When that software becomes confused as to where it is on the circuit, it can waste electrical energy in the wrong place, as happened to Russell in Belgium, or give a jolt of power in a potentially dangerous situation instead.
asserted
it → become → situation
Oscar Piastri was sent spinning into the wall on the formation lap in the year’s first race in Australia when he got extra power unexpectedly.
asserted
he → send → power
At last week’s race in Azerbaijan, Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas crashed on the last lap and reportedly blamed it on the software becoming confused and affecting his braking.
uncertain
software → crash → braking
The Aporia
