Motorsport

Laurent Mekies says Red Bull Racing's first win of 2026 in Formula 1 is the culmination of the squad's gradual upturn in form, but felt it's too early to tell if it can now be in the mix everywhere.
From being over a second behind the frontrunners at the start of the campaign, Red Bull has gradually chipped away at its deficit with a relentless stream of upgrades. Its last such package of the ...Keep reading

Alex Marquez says he crashed out of the Japanese Grand Prix after accidentally upshifting his Ducati while turning into a corner, describing the mistake as “unacceptable”. 
The Gresini rider failed to score a single point across the weekend at Motegi, in what was his worst showing since the season opener in Thailand.
The Spaniard’s troubles began in Saturday’s sprint when he ...Keep reading

Isack Hadjar had a podium in his pocket at the Bahrain Grand Prix, but battery issues thwarted his attempt to defend against the chasing Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. He finished his race in fifth place after he clawed his way back up the pack after a five-place grid penalty saw him start eighth on the grid.
"No pace," he admitted after the race when asked why he didn't look ...Keep reading

Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell has criticised the chaotic and heavily disrupted Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang as "not very F1", following a late power unit failure that saw his podium hopes slip away.
Russell had looked firmly in contention for a podium finish at the Sepang International Circuit before a sudden power unit failure on lap 50. The retirement added to a difficult campaign ...Keep reading

McLaren F1 chief Andrea Stella says he "accepts" crippling software bugs as seen at Sunday's Bahrain GP in Malaysia are a possibility with the current regulations, but hoped the FIA could avoid a repeat.
The start at a wet Sepang circuit was aborted after a large number of cars suffered a crippling software bug that left them coasting with no throttle input on the formation laps. The bug was ...Keep reading

Already running late because of the rain, the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia was pushed back further due to several cars crawling and stalling their way through the formation lap before the race had even started. The Sepang race was delayed by more than 90 minutes, leaving Formula fans watching an empty circuit as the FIA scrambled to send a software fix. Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley ...Keep reading

Cadillac Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas has chosen to cycle 350 kilometres (217 miles) from the Sepang International Circuit to Singapore rather than take a flight between the back-to-back grands prix. 
The Finnish driver began the multi-day endurance ride following his early retirement from Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. The event, held at Sepang, was the first F1 race at the ...Keep reading

Bubba Wallace had the opportunity to end his year-long winless streak on Sunday, and appeared to be in a great position following the final round of pit stops.
Wallace was directly behind race leader Chase Briscoe, and had strong pace in the No. 23 Toyota. He crept closer with every passing lap, but the defining moment came with 29 laps to go. Wallace was all over the back bumper of Briscoe's ...Keep reading

At first glance, a 37-point haul for Marc Marquez hardly suggests an unusual or intriguing weekend. But Motegi almost always provides novel sub-plots - and 2026 was, in fact, no exception.
Last-corner penalties, first-lap crashes, a new track surface, Honda's ups and downs at home and Michelin banning one of its own products were just some of the stories fizzing beneath the top line. While ...Keep reading

George Russell’s retirement from the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia will have huge consequences on the rest of his 2026 Formula 1 campaign - especially in regards to ADUO.
The Mercedes driver was running third under the safety car with five laps remaining at Sepang on Sunday, until he pulled over at the Turn 1 entry with a power unit failure.
Minds immediately went to what impact it would ...Keep reading

Max Verstappen delivered the first win for Red Bull of the 2026 Formula 1 season in Malaysia at the Bahrain Grand Prix, extending his win tally to an incredible 72. While it was a triumphant return to the top of the podium for the Dutchman, it was a huge moment for the team's partnership with Ford. Christian Horner, the man who set this chapter in motion, has now reacted to the win.
Horner, who ...Keep reading

Fernando Alonso scored Aston Martin’s best result of the 2026 Formula 1 season in the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, beating Lando Norris to eighth position.
The Adrian Newey-designed, Honda-powered AMR26 was more competitive than ever before, following its earlier struggles, at Sepang; Alonso and team-mate Lance Stroll both reached Q2, taking the 12th and 14th spots on the grid.
Starting ...Keep reading

The Sepang International Circuit recorded the largest crowd in its history as 261,000 fans attended the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix weekend, with 103,000 visitors on race day.
After the Bahrain Grand Prix was postponed in April due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, it was rescheduled for 4 October, with Malaysia hosting the event.
The race weekend was the first time Formula 1 had ...Keep reading

Pedro Acosta described the Japanese Grand Prix as his first “tough” race in a “really long time”, as a “strange” issue left him struggling in seventh place.
Fresh off his maiden MotoGP win at the Austrian Grand Prix, Acosta endured a relatively lacklustre weekend at Motegi, despite showing strong pace over a single lap to qualify on the front row.
Racing the hard rear tyre ...Keep reading

"72, mate! 72!", Verstappen said over the team radio immediately after crossing the finish line at the Sepang International Circuit.
It logically refers to the Dutchman’s number of Formula 1 victories, but this 72nd win prompted more emotion than many of the 71 that came before it. Of course, Verstappen has experienced much more special moments in his F1 career, and his previous victory in ...Keep reading

Koji Watanabe, the long-time boss of Honda's racing activities under HRC, will retire on 1 January 2027, with Keiichi Yasuda appointed as his successor.
A long-time Honda employee after first joining the Japanese marque in 1987, Watanabe became the head of Honda's racing division in 2022. In that time Watanabe oversaw the company's merger of its four-wheel and two-wheel divisions as well as its ...Keep reading

The restraint Marc Marquez has shown while celebrating his last two sprint podiums has led many to wonder about the reason behind his serious expression. The explanation lies in his explicit desire to avoid sharp swings in his adrenaline levels, allowing him to conserve his energy throughout a grand prix weekend.
Marquez’s attitude has changed as much as his daily routine since the ...Keep reading

Max Verstappen's victory at Sepang was an historic one. Twenty years from now, when a new generation of Formula 1 fans flicks through the history books, they may well wonder what a bizarre season 2026 must have been for the Bahrain Grand Prix to be hit by so much rain that the start had to be delayed.
But that's not what I mean.
It has been a very long time since a Ford engine last won an ...Keep reading

You know how you try to watch a series you like, but it’s sort of a boring episode with a lot of nothing going on – at least in the beginning – and you fall asleep in front of the TV? And have trouble sleeping through the night afterwards...
Well, that could have been one of the problems last night for Formula 1 fans around the world who had to endure an almost hour-long break in the ...Keep reading

Kyle Larson didn’t win the battle on Sunday night at Las Vegas Motor Speedway but Kyle Larson and Cliff Daniels took a tremendous step towards winning the war with how they rallied in the South Point Casino 400.
Despite an awful first half, in which they scored only a single stage point, they nearly won the race and still extended their points lead to 40 at the halfway mark of the Chase for ...Keep reading