Max Verstappen achieved a remarkable performance at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia, earning his first pole position of the 2026 Formula 1 season during qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix. The four-time world champion dominated with a time of 1:35.130, outpacing his nearest competitor, Lewis Hamilton, by 0.298 seconds.
In qualifying, Verstappen’s teammate at Red Bull, Isack Hadjar, finished third, 0.428 seconds behind the leading driver. However, Hadjar will start the race from eighth position after receiving a five-place grid penalty for using an additional internal combustion engine this weekend.
Overview of Bahrain Qualifying
Third on the grid will be Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who leads the overall standings. Antonelli faced challenges during the session, managing only one set of new soft tires for Q3 after having to complete an extra lap in Q2, where his initial attempt was invalidated for exceeding track limits.
Despite these difficulties, Antonelli outperformed his Mercedes teammate George Russell, who will begin the race in seventh position following Hadjar’s penalty. Russell will be sandwiched between Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris, with Oscar Piastri also in the mix. Pierre Gasly and Gabriel Bortoleto will occupy the fifth row of the grid as the slowest drivers in the final qualifying session.
Liam Lawson narrowly missed the top ten, finishing 11th after being edged out by Bortoleto in Q2 by 0.209 seconds in their battle for the last spot in Q3. Fernando Alonso will start on the sixth row, delivering his best qualifying session of the season for both himself and Aston Martin.
Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll will begin the race in 13th and 14th positions, respectively, with Stroll’s performance marking a solid day for Aston Martin. Qualifying at Sepang was significant as it marked the first time this season both Stroll and Alonso progressed beyond the first elimination session into Q2.
Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad, both facing grid penalties of 15 and 30 positions respectively, did not push hard in the second qualifying phase. Lindblad even attempted to assist his teammate Lawson by providing a slipstream on the back straight, but it was not enough for Lawson to advance.
Nico Hülkenberg was the first driver eliminated in Q1, finishing just 0.087 seconds behind Lindblad in the fight for 16th place, having made a braking error in the penultimate corner that likely cost him precious time.
Alongside him, Oliver Bearman, Esteban Ocon, Alex Albon, Valtteri Bottas, and Sergio Perez were also eliminated after the first 18 minutes of pole position contention. Haas drivers Bearman and Ocon approached qualifying aggressively, attempting three runs on three sets of soft tires but failed to progress further.
The Bahrain Grand Prix, the 16th round of the 2026 Formula 1 season, is scheduled to take place on Sunday at 10:00 AM.
