F1 Bahrain GP in Malaysia: Verstappen dominates for first pole of 2026 from Hamilton
Autosport • • sports
Key Points:
- Max Verstappen secured his first pole of the 2026 Formula 1 season at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, dominating qualifying with a time of 1m35.130s at Sepang.
- Lewis Hamilton qualified second for Ferrari, 0.298 seconds behind Verstappen, while Isack Hadjar initially placed third but will start eighth due to a five-place grid penalty for an engine change.
- Championship leader Kimi Antonelli struggled to fourth place after a Q2 lap deletion and limited Q3 running, with teammate George Russell qualifying eighth but moving up to seventh due to Hadjar’s penalty.
- Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, and Oscar Piastri completed the top six, with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto rounding out the top ten.
- Several drivers, including Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad, face grid penalties for various infractions, impacting their starting positions for Sunday’s race.
