From Autosport · Ronald Vording · · 1m 20s
FIA software bug causes Bahrain GP chaos
FIA software glitch at Sepang led to cars stalling during formation laps, forcing a 40-minute delay before race restart.
In brief
FIA software glitch at Sepang led to cars stalling during formation laps, forcing a 40-minute delay before race restart. A software bug caused cars to stall during formation laps at Sepang, leading to a 40-minute delay before the race restarted. Originally reported by Autosport.
Formation laps chaos
Cars stalled during formation laps behind safety car at Sepang International Circuit.
FIA software bug
FIA software bug prevented power redeployment after cars slowed to near stop.
Throttle malfunction
Drivers reported throttle pedal unresponsive with engine idling at low speeds.
Max Verstappen affected
Max Verstappen slowed significantly during formation laps behind safety car.
Red Bull and Racing Bulls
Red Bull and Racing Bulls teams tested software but not at low speeds.
Emergency fix deployed
FIA lifted energy limit constraint for affected minisectors to restart race.
Race delay impact
40-minute delay before fans saw F1 action after red flag.
Why bug occurred
Software not tested at extremely low speeds behind safety car.
FIA response
FIA confirmed software update was rushed but safe for race restart.
Post-race analysis
FIA will review to prevent recurrence but cannot guarantee bug won't happen again.
The headline
A software bug caused cars to stall during formation laps at Sepang, leading to a 40-minute delay before the race restarted.
