> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.the-race.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # 'Software bug' that triggered F1's Malaysia chaos explained - URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/software-bug-that-triggered-f1s-malaysia-chaos-explained/ - Published: 2026-10-04T13:52:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-04T14:01:40.000Z - Description: A “software bug” caused the chaos that forced the start of F1’s Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia to be aborted, but what is the bug and how exactly did it cause so much drama? - Author: Josh Suttill - Tags: Formula 1, #secondary_feature_2 You may have heard about the “software bug” which caused the chaos that forced the start of Formula 1’s Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia to be aborted, but what is the bug and how exactly did it cause so much drama? After torrential rain delayed the initial start by 40 minutes, a start attempt had to be abandoned after multiple cars either crawled around or ground to a halt on the formation laps. This meant the race was delayed for over 45 minutes and led to complaints from F1 drivers who described it as “horrible” and evidence that F1 has become “too complicated”. It emerged after the race that a software bug had triggered the chaos. There’s an alternative engine mode mandated for rain-affected running with a maximum 250kW deployment, compared to a maximum of 350kW in dry conditions. There are certain sectors where a 250kW reduction is imposed (for safety reasons), one of which is the Turn 9 left-hander at Sepang, where the problems occurred. Turn 9 is also an area where a ramp-down of the electric power isn't needed, so the MGU-K can shut down totally in an instant. When the cars dropped to very slow speeds behind the safety car, the boost pressure started falling, and there was no MGU-K to rescue them. At this point, a bug in the system put the cars into what is known as 'continuous offset' - which is a 60-second emergency lockdown that had been imposed this year to prevent teams deliberately shutting down the MGU-K. It can also knock out the internal combustion engine power. It’s similar to the now-[banned engine trick](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-red-bull-f1-engine-trick-banned-fia/) deployed earlier in the year and exposed by shutdowns in practice at Suzuka earlier this year. As an emergency measure, the FIA released new software that removed the 250kW restraint in those sectors so there was some MGU-K power to allow them to circulate in those sections at low speeds. The FIA issued a statement after the race, saying: “On the formation lap ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, 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." ### Why wasn’t it caught earlier? The FIA also took the unusual step of sending FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis to the post-race media pen to explain the situation in detail. “We didn't manage to test the software as extensively as we would have liked, because there's been very little wet running this year,” Tombazis explained. “There was a bit of a combination of circumstances which caused this bug to kick in. “Basically, \[on\] the formation lap, some cars went very slowly, almost came to a standstill. There was a bit of a concertina effect between cars, and some cars almost stopped completely. “That bug prevented the power from being redeployed, and for the cars to start again. I think if we had had a bit more testing, we probably would have managed to catch it in time, and not have such a situation. “Once the problem happened, our guys realised very quickly what was happening, and had to work under a lot of time pressure for an update to the software, which was issued to the teams, and the teams had to install it on their cars. “So all of that took about 20 minutes. It may have felt like five hours for spectators waiting in a race, and for everybody else, which is understandable, and we are sorry about that. But I think it was quite a fast reaction given the problem.” This grand prix was the first proper in-weekend running for the 2026 cars in rain-affected conditions. These cars have only been tested in the wet at a couple of Pirelli tyre tests earlier in the year - Red Bulls and Racing Bulls tested at Suzuka after the Japanese GP and Ferrari tested on an artificially soaked Fiorano circuit in April. There had been warnings from those tests about how tricky these cars would be in rain-affected conditions this year, but the slow-speed conditions of the Malaysia formation laps weren’t tested. “I think it was a combination of the speed, the very low speeds, that was far more low than you would normally do in such a test that caused it,” Tombazis said. “I don't believe those \[Pirelli\] tests were in any way representative of that situation in order to help us catch it in time. “They didn't get tested enough. Normally, software has to be tested far more in detail, and unfortunately, well, I don't know if it's unfortunate or not, but this year we've had, generally speaking, very good weather, and that has been the reason why it happened so late.” Asked if it was a mistake not to have anticipated it, he added: “Well, any bug is a product of a mistake. I don't know of any software that doesn't have bugs and updates. Your computer probably gets updated every three days, those are all bugs. “Of course, anticipating these things is what one hopes to do, but sometimes some very combination of events isn't properly anticipated and causes the problem.” Tombazis added: “Sometimes things fall through the net and people learn, and you do a better job next time.” ### Where does the software come from? The FIA resolved the situation by sending software to all of the teams to download and install on their power units before the race was properly started. The FIA’s on-site technical department quickly recognised the issue and wrote that code, a “cobbled-up, hurried solution”, by Tombazis’s own admission, so the race could get underway. “Just to be clear, the software is developed by the FIA in collaboration with the teams. It's part of the standard code that we have that is common to all the cars,” Tombazis said. “So, yes, we are the regulator and we have this responsibility, but this software is developed by the FIA, by the supplier of the standard ECU \[Motion Applied\], and by the team and the PU manufacturers, all in collaboration. “None of these people anticipated the problem. It's clearly FIA software. We obviously have a big role in it. We need to do better, but it's software that is developed collaboratively by all the Formula 1 industry.” The entire power unit software has been developed for the last three to four years, producing “a huge list of issues found by the teams” that prompted multiple updates before the 2026 season started - but this issue slipped through. “Fortunately, our guys understood the issue very, very quickly, and the update was done, I think, very competently," Tombazis said. "It was obviously a rushed job. The priority was to get running as quickly as possible again, so I think the reaction time was quite fast.” “It wasn't a perfect job. Clearly, we didn't test the updates, obviously, but I think it was the way to handle such a case.” ### Will it happen again? The FIA and the teams will undertake a full debrief after the race and while they’re confident this specific issue won’t happen again, it can’t guarantee there won’t be further glitches with such complicated engines. “When you have electrical energy and combustion energy all working together, and obviously when you want to ensure that there's sporting fairness between the teams, that is complicated,” Tombazis said. “We would all like it to be simpler, but the fact is when you have as much electrical energy, it does make it more complicated. “We haven't done a full debrief of the situation and see how we can avoid such an issue. We have every race a long debrief afterwards where we attempt the criticalities. “Obviously, that was a major criticality, and we need to make sure we avoid it. “But can I guarantee it will never happen again? This specific problem? Yes. A problem? No, but we will do our best to avoid it.”