FIA Orders Full Review of Sepang Formation-Lap Power Glitch

Formula 1's governing body has promised a full investigation into the bizarre software glitch that turned the start of Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit into farce, with several cars losing power and crawling around on the formation lap.

Heavy rain had already delayed the original start by 40 minutes before the field headed out behind the safety car. Halfway through the opening lap, polesitter Max Verstappen slowed dramatically; Lewis Hamilton then ground to a halt before the final corner and had to stop and restart his car — a career first, he said. Multiple other cars also slowed or stopped, and the FIA Technical Department used the rain delay to push a software update to all teams, removing the energy-limit constraint in the affected sectors before the race eventually restarted around 1 hour 40 minutes behind schedule.

The FIA's statement blamed "an unprecedented combination of low engine speed, low-grip conditions, wet-weather energy management settings and the Sepang circuit's sector configuration" for the unintended power loss, and confirmed the issue had never been detected in testing or on laps to the grid. Single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis told reporters the lack of wet-weather running in pre-season testing played a part, and that the governing body will now "undertake a full review of the issue" with the teams, the manufacturers and the ECU provider.

Verstappen, who went on to win the race, laughed off the episode by comparing it to a "Lego race." But with drivers already frustrated by the complexity of the 2026 power units, the Sepang software saga is the latest sign that F1's new technical era still has serious teething problems.