Verstappen delivers first F1 win for Red Bull Ford Powertrains

Max Verstappen’s victory in the rain-delayed Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia gave Red Bull Ford Powertrains its first Formula 1 win in its first season as a power-unit supplier.

Verstappen converted his Saturday qualifying pole into Sunday’s victory, finishing 2.307 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli; Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton was third. Antonelli and George Russell passed him on the run to Turn 1, with all three on intermediates, but Verstappen worked back into the lead.

During the initial formation lap, Verstappen radioed that he could not accelerate. After the race, he described the start as hectic and said he had no power while waiting for it to come in. He also said Red Bull had made the right call with the intermediates.

Verstappen called the win “a really nice one”, given the year Red Bull had had and the progress it had made, and said he was proud of everyone. He also called it “pretty impressive” that Red Bull won its first race in the first year with its own power unit.