Max Verstappen claimed his first pole position of the 2026 Formula One season at the Sepang International Circuit on October 3, 2026, clocking a lap of 1 minute 35.130 seconds to edge out Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Qualifying at Sepang International Circuit
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen secured pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on October 3, 2026, clocking 1 minute 35.130 seconds around the Sepang International Circuit. The session marked Verstappen’s first pole of the season and his return to the top of the timesheets at a track where he last won a Grand Prix in 2017.
Verstappen maintained control through the early stages of qualifying, becoming the first driver to drop below the 1 minute 36 second mark in Q2 with a lap of 1 minute 35.696 seconds. Hamilton qualified second for Ferrari, marking his fifth consecutive front-row start at the circuit.
Grid Penalties Shift the Midfield Order
While Verstappen and Hamilton locked down the front row, qualifying brought significant shake-ups further down the order due to a series of grid penalties. Isack Hadjar finished third fastest in the session for Red Bull but dropped to eighth on the grid after receiving a five-place penalty. Despite setting the third-fastest time, Hadjar expressed annoyance over team radio and later mentioned he had hoped to capture second position to mitigate the upcoming grid drop as much as possible, pointing out the regret of facing such a sanction on a layout as fast as this one.
That demotion moved championship leader Kimi Antonelli up to third for Mercedes alongside Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc. Mercedes arrived in Malaysia with an upgrade package, though Antonelli experienced a brief scare in Q2 when his initial lap time was deleted for exceeding track limits before he recovered to secure a front-row-adjacent start. Meanwhile, George Russell managed only eighth for Mercedes. Gabriel Bortoleto of Audi and Pierre Gasly of Alpine rounded out the top ten in P10 and P9 respectively, whereas Racing Bulls missed out on a Q3 appearance despite Arvid Lindblad providing a tow to help Liam Lawson. Lawson ultimately claimed P11 ahead of Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, and Carlos Sainz, with Aston Martin showing a distinct upward trend compared to their earlier form this season.
Lindblad was set to be relegated to the back of the grid after switching out his old power unit, and Lawson finished in P11 ahead of Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, and Lance Stroll, with Aston Martin enjoying a marked improvement compared to earlier in the season.
Hamilton Struggles with Overheating Tyres
Drivers battled intense heat and severe tyre management issues throughout the weekend. Hamilton reported that early practice sessions proved exceptionally difficult as his car suffered from sliding and overheating tyres.
“We made so many changes through all these practice sessions because the cars are sliding, these tyres are overheating. It was really, really hard to find a good balance. We made one last change going into qualifying and I think we hit the sweet spot.”
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari driver, via Reuters
Looking ahead to the race, Hamilton noted that tyre degradation remains the primary hurdle, pointing to Verstappen’s strong long-run pace in the upgraded Red Bull car.
“I’m much happier with where the car is, but tomorrow is a completely different ballgame. Making these tyres last around this track – I mean, they’re overheating from the get-go.”
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari driver, via Motorsport
Hamilton added that every little bit of wheelspin or snap makes a difference in how far the tyres will go, noting that he would try his best to hold onto Max because the Red Bull driver was really quick on his long runs.
Parc Ferme Moments Go Viral
Beyond the timing sheets, a post-qualifying exchange between Verstappen and Hamilton captured widespread attention online. Despite years of intense on-track rivalry, the two world champions were photographed warmly congratulating each other in parc ferme after stepping out of their cars, prompting a flood of reactions across social media platforms comparing the moment to historical title fights. Fans shared various remarks on Reddit and other platforms, with some describing them as a divorced couple, but happy for each other
and calling the interaction wholesome.
