Verstappen Wins as Antonelli Extends Championship Lead
Max Verstappen claimed victory at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Sepang, while Kimi Antonelli extended his lead in the championship after a dramatic race featuring changing conditions, strategic mistakes and late heartbreak.
Verstappen secured his first win of the season and his 72nd victory for Red Bull, matching Michael Schumacher’s total number of wins for Ferrari.
Antonelli finished on the podium and now leads his Mercedes teammate George Russell by 84 points, the biggest gap between the two drivers this season.
Russell’s race ended in disappointment after a late power-unit failure forced him to retire. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff confirmed the failure was not caused by the Safety Car.
“We are massively annoyed and not in a happy place,” Wolff said, adding that the team had not yet completed its assessment of the failure.
Hamilton produced one of the strongest recoveries of the race to finish third after Ferrari faced major problems before and during the opening stages.
Hamilton lost power before the race and dropped to the back of the field. Ferrari then made different tyre choices, with Charles Leclerc switching quickly to intermediate tyres while Hamilton remained on the softs.
Despite falling as low as 17th, Hamilton managed to preserve his soft tyres in the changing conditions and fought his way back into podium contention.
Leclerc also recovered to finish fourth, giving Ferrari a double podium despite the team’s difficult strategic calls.
McLaren also struggled with its tyre strategy. Both cars started on medium tyres, while several rivals benefited from the performance of the soft compound as the track dried.
Oscar Piastri switched to intermediate tyres during the wet conditions but later required additional tyre changes. He eventually finished ahead of teammate Lando Norris.
Norris endured a late scare when he ran off the track during the Safety Car period but recovered to finish ninth. He is facing a post-race investigation for allegedly driving erratically.
Red Bull also showed strong pace throughout the changing conditions, with Verstappen making the right strategic calls to control the race. Isack Hadjar also impressed for much of the race before fading late.
With seven races remaining, including one Sprint, Antonelli now holds a commanding 84-point advantage over Russell in the championship standings.
The result leaves Mercedes facing a difficult recovery as the team looks to close the gap and keep its championship hopes alive.
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