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Sepang served up pure, unadulterated chaos as torrential rain, rogue engine software, and slick-tyre gambling threw the grid into disarray. From genius tyre management to embarrassing warm-up lap blunders, here is our full breakdown and our ratings for every driver's performance in the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Valtteri Bottas, Cadillac (DNF) – 4/10
Bottas spun out on the formation lap while trying to generate heat in slick tyres on a greasy track, ending his race before it even properly began. Taking a tactical gamble on slick rubber was a defensible roll of the dice for Cadillac, but throwing the machine into the scenery on the warm-up lap is unforgivable for a driver of his experience. A brief, messy outing to forget.
Alex Albon, Williams (DNF) – 5.5/10
A deeply frustrating afternoon for the Anglo-Thai driver, who fought gamely despite dealing with persistent brake hydraulics issues. He carved his way into eighth early on with smart inter choices, but a clumsy double-stack pit stop and flat-spotted tyres hampered his momentum before Williams eventually retired the car to avoid further damage. Solid effort, but gremlins doomed his day.
