‘Lego race’: FIA launches probe after F1 software chaos at Sepang

The Bahrain Grand Prix, held at Malaysia's Sepang International Circuit, faced significant disruptions due to rain and widespread software issues with the new generation of Formula One cars, likened by Lewis Hamilton to a "Lego race." Max Verstappen emerged victorious, though the race saw multiple cars, including Hamilton's, struggle with power management problems related to new regulations and technological complexities.

The FIA has committed to a full investigation into the faults, as the event raised concerns about the reliability and future of the sport's current regulations and technology.

George Russell's retirement from third position has significantly impacted his championship aspirations, leaving him far behind in the standings.

SEPANG, Oct 5 — Formula One’s lawmakers have vowed to launch a full investigation into the rain-delayed Bahrain Grand Prix, which Lewis Hamilton likened to a “Lego race” after multiple cars broke down with software problems, reported PA Media/dpa.

Max Verstappen navigated his way through the chaos to claim his first triumph of the year.

Kimi Antonelli took second, with Lewis Hamilton completing a fine comeback drive from 18th to finish on the podium.

George Russell retired from third with an engine issue, leaving his world championship dream all but over.

However, the race at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia was overshadowed by embarrassing and unprecedented scenes when this season’s new cars — which have already faced stern criticism — effectively failed to work in the wet.

The initial getaway had already been pushed back by 40 minutes following a deluge of rain.

F1 bosses then had to abandon the start when a number of drivers, including Verstappen and Hamilton, were struck by gremlins on the formation lap, with problems linked to the controversial 50-50 split between combustion and battery power leaving them unable to get their cars to operate.

Pole-sitter Verstappen was the first to complain that he could not accelerate. His crawling pace had a knock-on effect, with Hamilton, running behind Verstappen, then hitting trouble in his Ferrari.

“I am pressing the throttle, and nothing is happening,” said Hamilton before stopping at the side of the track.

A whole host of other drivers were also struggling to keep their engines running in the first meaningful wet running for this generation of car.

Verstappen, who has threatened to quit the sport because of his disdain of the new regulations, was eventually able to get up to speed.

He laughed and shook his head upon seeing some of the cars parked at the side of the track.

“Look at this,” he said over the radio.

The grid eventually limped back to the pit lane, and a further 53 minutes passed before the green light was given by the sport’s chiefs to restart the race.

An explanation for the lengthy delay was not offered at the time, although it later emerged that new software had to be downloaded to the cars.

Two laps then followed behind the safety car before a standing start.

Verstappen took the chequered flag 2.3 seconds clear of Antonelli.

“These engines are so complicated, and a lot of software is implemented,” said Verstappen as he reflected on the chaos that puts the sport’s contentious rules firmly back in the spotlight.

“I triggered it first, and then I looked in my mirror, and I was like, ‘Wait, are they waiting for me?’”

Hamilton, sitting next to Verstappen in the post-race news conference, said: “It was like the Lego race (before the British Grand Prix).”

Verstappen continued: “What can you say? That’s not what you want for the sport.”

Hamilton added: “I had to stop on track and stop the car and engine and restart it. I’ve never done that before. I hope there is a lesson learned.”

The FIA said in a statement on Sunday: “On the formation lap an unprecedented combination of low engine speed, low-grip conditions, wet-weather energy management settings and the Sepang circuit’s sector configuration led to an unintended loss of power for a number of cars.

“As a result, the FIA Technical Department removed the energy limit constraint in the affected sectors through an updated software release distributed to all competitors during the race delay caused by heavy rain, enabling teams to make the necessary changes to the power unit before the start of the race.

“This issue had not been detected by the FIA or the teams during testing or during the laps to the grid. The FIA, together with the teams and power unit manufacturers, will undertake a full review of the issue.”

Russell’s failure to finish leaves him 84 points behind his team-mate with only seven scheduled races and a possible 183 points remaining.

“The whole day felt like a bit of a faff, with the delay, the red flag, and endless laps behind the safety car,” he said.

“It didn’t feel very ‘F1’ today. And I would have been disappointed if I was in the stands and watching that unfold.” — Bernama-PA Media/dpa

*Editor’s note: The initials FIA stands for Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, the international governing body for motorsport.

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在马来西亚雪邦国际赛道举行的巴林大奖赛因降雨和新一代一级方程式赛车普遍存在的软件问题而受到严重干扰，刘易斯·汉密尔顿将其比作“乐高赛车”。尽管马克斯·维斯塔潘最终获胜，但包括汉密尔顿在内的多辆赛车都因与新规则和技术复杂性相关的动力管理问题而苦苦挣扎。

国际汽联已承诺对事故原因进行全面调查，因为该事件引发了人们对这项运动当前规则和技术的可靠性和未来的担忧。

乔治·拉塞尔从第三名的位置退役，这对他争夺总冠军的希望产生了重大影响，使他在积分榜上远远落后。

雪邦，10 月 5 日——据 PA Media/dpa 报道，一级方程式赛车的立法者誓言要对因雨延误的巴林大奖赛展开全面调查。此前，由于多辆赛车出现软件问题而停赛，刘易斯·汉密尔顿将这场比赛比作“乐高赛车”。

马克斯·维斯塔潘在混乱中脱颖而出，赢得了他今年的首场胜利。

基米·安东内利获得第二名，刘易斯·汉密尔顿从第 18 位奋起直追，最终登上领奖台。

乔治·拉塞尔因引擎故障从第三名退赛，他的世界冠军梦几乎就此破灭。

然而，在马来西亚雪邦国际赛道举行的这场比赛却因本赛季的新赛车（此前已受到严厉批评）在湿滑路面上表现不佳而蒙上了一层尴尬和前所未有的阴影。

由于暴雨，原定的撤离时间已经推迟了 40 分钟。

随后，由于包括维斯塔潘和汉密尔顿在内的多名车手在暖胎圈遭遇故障，F1 赛事组织者不得不放弃比赛。这些故障与备受争议的燃油动力和电池动力 50:50 的分配比例有关，导致他们的赛车无法启动。

杆位发车的维斯塔潘率先抱怨自己无法加速。他缓慢的速度产生了连锁反应，紧随其后的汉密尔顿随后驾驶的法拉利赛车也遭遇了故障。

“我踩着油门，但车子却没反应，”汉密尔顿说着，把车停在了赛道边。

在这一代赛车首次真正意义上的湿地测试中，许多其他车手也都在努力保持引擎运转。

维斯塔潘曾因不满新规而威胁要退出这项运动，但最终还是能够跟上节奏。

看到一些汽车停在赛道边，他笑着摇了摇头。

“看看这个，”他通过无线电说道。

赛车最终艰难地驶回维修区，又过了 53 分钟，赛事管理方才发出绿灯，比赛重新开始。

当时并未对长时间的延误做出解释，但后来得知是因为需要向汽车下载新的软件。

随后安全车带领跑了两圈，之后正式发车。

维斯塔潘领先安东内利 2.3 秒冲过终点线。

“这些引擎非常复杂，而且应用了大量的软件，”维斯塔潘在反思这场混乱时说道，这场混乱再次将这项运动中备受争议的规则推到了风口浪尖。

“我先触发了它，然后我照镜子，心想，‘等等，他们是在等我吗？’”

赛后新闻发布会上，汉密尔顿坐在维斯塔潘旁边，说道：“这就像（英国大奖赛之前的）乐高比赛一样。”

维斯塔潘继续说道：“还能说什么呢？这绝不是这项运动想要看到的。”

汉密尔顿补充道：“我不得不停在赛道上，熄火重启赛车。我以前从未遇到过这种情况。我希望这次能吸取教训。”

国际汽联周日发表声明称：“在暖胎圈中，由于引擎转速低、抓地力差、雨天能量管理设置以及雪邦赛道的分段配置等前所未有的因素组合，导致多辆赛车意外失去动力。

“因此，国际汽联技术部门在暴雨导致比赛延误期间，通过向所有参赛者分发的更新软件版本，取消了受影响赛段的能量限制，使各车队能够在比赛开始前对动力单元进行必要的更改。

“国际汽联和各车队在测试或发车圈速测试中均未发现此问题。国际汽联将与各车队和动力单元制造商一起，对此问题进行全面审查。”

拉塞尔未能完赛，落后队友 84 分，而只剩下七场比赛，他还有 183 分的机会。

他说：“今天一整天都感觉有点儿麻烦，又是延误，又是红旗，又是跟在安全车后面没完没了地跑圈。”

“今天感觉不太像F1。如果我在看台上看到这一切，我会很失望的。”——马新社/PA媒体/德新社

*编者注：FIA 是 Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile（国际汽车联合会）的缩写，它是国际汽车运动的管理机构。

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