Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen found themselves unusually united after the extraordinary power unit software chaos that disrupted the formation lap at Sepang. The two world champions were among the first drivers to lose power before the start and later agreed that the bizarre scenes exposed a problem with the complexity of Formula 1’s new-generation engines.
Sunday’s race in Malaysia produced no shortage of talking points, including Max Verstappen’s first victory of the season, Lewis Hamilton’s recovery drive and a championship that is now firmly in Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s hands. Yet the unavoidable subject after the Grand Prix was the remarkable and embarrassing confusion before the start, when numerous cars suffered power unit software problems and began slowing, stopping and, in some cases, restarting at different points around the circuit.
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen caught in Sepang software chaos
The scenes looked more like a malfunctioning video game than a Formula 1 World Championship event. Curiously, the problems began with the two most successful drivers on the grid, who were together on the front row and leading the formation lap: Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.
The two stars were the first to experience the sudden power losses caused by software problems within the highly complex power units. The disruption became one of the defining moments of the chaotic Bahrain Grand Prix weekend at Sepang, before both drivers later discussed what had happened during the post-race press conference.
For once, the long-time rivals were firmly on the same side, with both pointing towards the regulations and the complexity of the power unit technology.
Lewis Hamilton explains why he had to restart his Ferrari
“The rain came and there was general panic when we lost power,” Lewis Hamilton said as he recalled the chaotic moments from the cockpit. “In my case, in particular, the power didn’t come back immediately: I had to stop on track and restart the car.”
Max Verstappen was then asked whether it was concerning that a little rain could trigger such a situation.
“Yes, that’s exactly the problem we have,” Max Verstappen replied. “These engines are so complicated and integrate so much software. That’s exactly the problem. And, yes, I triggered it first and then I looked in the mirror and thought: ‘Wait, are they all waiting for me or what’s going on?’ It was like a Lego race.”
Lewis Hamilton confirmed that the cars were travelling at the same reduced speed as the strange problem spread through the field.
“Yes, we had the same speed,” the Ferrari driver explained.
Max Verstappen compares bizarre scenes to Lego cars
Max Verstappen continued: “The same speed. Yes, it was crazy. I mean, it felt like the power of Lego cars. At one point there were five of us side by side on the straight because we couldn’t understand what was happening. Then we did a lap and I saw another eight cars still moving at walking pace, and I saw you [speaking to Lewis Hamilton] on your own moving at walking pace.”
Lewis Hamilton then described the unusual procedure he was forced to perform after his Ferrari failed to recover normally.
“Yes, I had to stop on track, switch off the car and the engine and restart them. I had never done that before,” Lewis Hamilton added in response to Max Verstappen.
Hamilton hopes Formula 1 learns from Sepang problems
Max Verstappen made clear that he did not believe such scenes were appropriate for Formula 1, particularly given the strange spectacle created during the formation lap.
“It’s not really what you want for this sport,” Max Verstappen said.
Lewis Hamilton agreed and expressed the hope that Formula 1 would take something useful from what had happened.
“Yes, I hope a lesson has been learned from it,” Lewis Hamilton added.
The exchange summed up the assessment of two of the most successful drivers of their generation after one of the most unusual and embarrassing pre-race sequences Formula 1 has witnessed, with the complexity of the power unit software suddenly becoming one of the biggest talking points of the Sepang weekend.
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