News Summary
- Toto Wolff confirmed that a power unit failure ended George Russell’s race at Sepang.
- He ruled out the Safety Car as the cause, while saying the failure had not yet been assessed.
- Wolff expressed frustration with Mercedes’ pace and the damage to Russell’s championship chances.
Toto Wolff confirmed that George Russell’s retirement from the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia was caused by a power unit failure, ruling out the Safety Car as the trigger. The Mercedes team principal described Sepang as one of his worst experiences after the team’s performance difficulties were compounded by a costly technical problem.
Russell had been running third when his Mercedes stopped during the closing stages. Teammate Kimi Antonelli finished second, extending his championship lead over the Briton from 66 to 84 points.
“It is a PU failure, wasn’t caused by the Safety Car, we haven’t assessed it yet,” Wolff said.
Wolff’s initial explanation separates the timing of the retirement from its cause. Although Russell stopped during a Safety Car period, the Mercedes boss said the intervention had not caused the failure. The precise nature of the problem remained to be assessed.
The full Sepang race report and results detail how Max Verstappen won ahead of Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton after a race disrupted by rain, technical problems and multiple Safety Car periods.
Wolff frustrated by Mercedes’ lack of speed
The retirement was only part of Wolff’s dissatisfaction. Mercedes had arrived at Sepang with a major upgrade, but struggled to deliver the expected performance as Red Bull took pole position and victory.
Antonelli salvaged second place, yet Wolff acknowledged that the team needed to address its pace deficit.
“I am so massively annoyed and not in a happy place. First of all, we didn’t have the speed… So, there is a lot of homework to be done to recover, which we will,” Wolff said.
Mercedes therefore leaves Malaysia with both performance and reliability questions to resolve. Russell’s failure removed a likely podium result, while Antonelli’s second place could not conceal the team’s difficulties matching Verstappen.
Russell’s retirement compounds championship damage
Russell scored no points at Sepang, while Antonelli collected 18. Had the Mercedes drivers finished second and third, Russell would have lost only 3 points to his teammate.
The retirement instead widened the gap to 84 points, leaving Russell on 236 against Antonelli’s 320. Hamilton remains third in the standings with 214.
“To make things worse, the PU failure for George, which is terrible for his Championship… One of my worst experiences to be honest,” Wolff added.
Mercedes now faces a short turnaround before the next race, with the investigation into Russell’s power unit accompanying its work to understand the Sepang performance deficit.
Formula 1 returns from 9–11 October for the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay. GRANDE PRÊMIO will cover all the action throughout the weekend.
F1 today: FAQ
Who won the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia?
Max Verstappen won the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang on Sunday, 4 October, taking his first victory of the 2026 F1 season. Kimi Antonelli finished second, with Lewis Hamilton completing the podium.
Why was the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia delayed?
Heavy rain initially delayed the start at Sepang. Several drivers then experienced power delivery problems during the formation procedure, forcing race control to suspend the start again. The race eventually began more than 90 minutes after its scheduled time.
How far ahead is Kimi Antonelli in the F1 championship?
Kimi Antonelli leads George Russell by 84 points after finishing second at Sepang while his Mercedes teammate retired. Antonelli has 320 points, Russell has 236 and Lewis Hamilton is third with 214.
