Bradley Lord calls for simpler F1 regulations after Sepang start disruption

Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord called for simpler future F1 regulations after a software fault disrupted the start at Sepang.

On 4 October, the cars of Lewis Hamilton, Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas stopped during the wet formation lap for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at Sepang, then got going again. The FIA aborted the start procedure, and a software update was needed before the race could proceed.

In comments reported on 5 October, Lord said the cars and their regulations were complex enough to catch F1 out even around race 15 or 16 of the 2026 season. He argued that the sport’s broad future direction should be toward simplification rather than greater complexity. He also called the disruption “a footnote in what was otherwise a really exciting afternoon of racing.”

FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said the software had been tested, but not in the specific very-low-speed conditions encountered at Sepang. A bug prevented power from being redeployed and cars from restarting, he said. The FIA sent teams an update, and Tombazis apologized to fans.

Sergio Perez called the episode “unacceptable”, while Lando Norris described it as “just horrible” and criticized F1’s electronic systems.

The BBC reported on 5 October that the FIA had launched a full review of the incident. On 6 October, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said he expected discussions involving the teams, the FIA and F1 about keeping the complexity of the cars and systems under control.