Chaos at Sepang: Rain and a Software Glitch Abort the Start Twice Before Verstappen Wins in Malaysia
SEPANG, Malaysia — The Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia was held at the Sepang International Circuit on Sunday, October 4 — and heavy rain threw the start procedure into chaos. Cars slowed to a crawl on two successive formation laps as some machines lost power at low engine revs, and the start had to be aborted. The confusion was later traced to a software bug in the power units. Once racing got under way, Red Bull's Max Verstappen won the race — his first grand prix victory of the season.
Formula One's governing body, the FIA, opened an investigation. On October 8 it concluded that some cars running on low engine revs at certain points of the circuit experienced a 'loss of power beyond the original intent' that could not be recovered in those sectors. FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said the lack of pre-season testing in wet conditions, with Sepang the first wet start of the season, played a part in the chaos. As a result, the configuration established for the Sepang event will be reinstated for the Singapore Grand Prix should similar wet conditions be expected, and a further wet-weather software update will be released for the United States Grand Prix on October 25.
The Sepang round was Formula 1's return to Malaysia after nine years, staged back-to-back with Singapore. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim had announced that national broadcaster RTM would carry the race live nationwide, and the rain-soaked drama reached living rooms across the country.
For the FIA and the teams, the lesson from Sepang is specific: software must be stress-tested for wet conditions before race day. The FIA said it would work with teams and manufacturers on more robust testing so that a repeat of cars losing power at low revs can be avoided.
Sources: Compiled from Reuters' October 8 report on the FIA investigation (covering the October 4 race) and Singapore Grand Prix weekend reports on the Sepang result.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 雪邦雨战：2009年马来西亚大奖赛在暴雨中提前结束（资料图），Rik1083 摄，公共领域（Wikimedia Commons）
