Max Verstappen Says First Red Bull Engine Win Was Incredible After Hectic Bahrain Grand Prix Victory

• Max Verstappen won the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia for his and Red Bull’s first victory of the 2026 season.
• The win also marked the maiden victory for Red Bull Ford Powertrains, the team’s own engine supplier in its first year of operation.
• Verstappen called the result “incredible” and “amazing” after a hectic, twice-delayed race at Sepang, with his father Jos visibly emotional on the podium.

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A Long Wait Ends in Sepang

Max Verstappen says he felt “incredibly proud” of Red Bull after ending the team’s winless start to 2026 with victory at a dramatic Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, a result that also delivered the maiden win for Red Bull Ford Powertrains.

Verstappen had looked in control after taking pole position in Saturday’s qualifying, but Sunday’s race did not go to plan from the opening minutes. Heavy rain delayed the start, several drivers struggled for grip on the formation lap, and the procedure was suspended before the Grand Prix eventually got underway in mixed conditions.

Losing the Lead, Then Taking It Back

Verstappen was passed by the Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell once the race began, dropping him out of the position his qualifying pace had earned him. He fought his way back to the front before the race was over, then had to defend the lead through a late Virtual Safety Car and a full Safety Car phase before the chequered flag came out.

Asked whether his 72nd career victory was the sweetest of his career, Verstappen smiled before answering. “It’s a really nice one, after the year that we’ve had and the progression that we’ve made,” he said. “I’m incredibly proud of everyone, and it’s just super nice to win here.”

“It Was Very Hectic”

Verstappen went on to describe the chaos of the opening laps, when a lack of power out of the restart left him exposed to the chasing Mercedes cars.

“It was very hectic with a lot of different things in the start,” he explained. “No power, so you have to wait for the power to kick in. But then we made the right call with the intermediate [tyres], and after that, step by step, we moved our way forward. From there onwards we could do our own race until the end again, of course with the Safety Car, but we kept it all under control.”

A Milestone for the Power Unit

Beyond the result on the board, Verstappen took time to reflect on what the win meant for Red Bull’s engine programme. The Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia marked the first season that Red Bull has built and run its own power unit under the Red Bull Ford Powertrains banner at its UK headquarters in Milton Keynes, rather than buying engines from an outside manufacturer.

“Of course, very special for us,” Verstappen told ESPN. “I mean, we had a very complicated and tough start to the year with all sorts of problems and just not being competitive enough. But throughout the year, the team has been working very hard to understand our issues and bring good performance upgrades to the car and make it more driveable. Step by step, we’ve been getting closer and closer, and today, and of course especially this whole weekend, we’ve been really in good form. So, yeah, it’s amazing.

“Very, very enjoyable to win here and also have our first victory for our own engine. I mean, it’s an incredible project with a lot of partners and a lot of people that are dedicated to be where we are now. So, yeah, [a] fantastic feeling.”

Jos Verstappen and a Season Behind the Scenes

TV cameras picked out Verstappen’s father, Jos, looking emotional on the podium, a reaction Verstappen said reflected how hard the year had been away from the cameras. The Dutchman had only just committed to a new Red Bull contract last month, having delayed the decision while he weighed up his future in the sport.

“We’re all very much invested in it,” Verstappen said. “And, of course, you know, my relationship with my dad, we really understand each other well from all the years that we have spent together working towards our goal in Formula 1. So he’s still there in the background. He’s not coming every race, but when he is there, we talk a lot about everything. He knows everything.

“And, yeah, also for him, I guess the beginning of the season was not nice to watch, as for me being in the car was not nice to drive. But then seeing how the team progressed and basically never really stopped working and really took the car and just really tried to fix the issues that we had, and then deliver something like this, it’s amazing. And also with the people involved, honestly, the spirit in the team is very good. Everyone is on the same line and we really understand each other well. So it’s very enjoyable to work in the team and that’s why I think also everyone is super happy that we finally delivered a result like this.”

The win also extended a personal record for Verstappen. He has now won at least one race in each of the last 10 seasons, a run matched by only two other drivers in the sport’s history, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton. Formula 1 now heads straight to Singapore for the final Sprint weekend of the year, with Verstappen hoping Sepang marks a turning point rather than an isolated high point in a campaign defined, until now, by the wait for a first win.

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More F1 Reading

• George Russell Admits His 2026 Title Hopes Are Now Exceptionally Unlikely After Cruel Bahrain GP Retirement
• Lewis Hamilton Reveals the Tyre Debate That Sank His Heart Before Remarkable Bahrain GP Recovery to Podium
• Max Verstappen Claims First Win Of 2026 At Chaotic Bahrain Grand Prix
• Max Verstappen Storms To First Pole Of 2026

Written by

Jack Renn

Jack Renn is an editor at F1 Chronicle and a veteran motorsport journalist with 25 years of experience covering Formula 1 and international motorsport. A member of the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS), the global body representing accredited sports journalists, Jack has spent his career reporting from paddocks and press rooms across the F1 calendar. His work spans race analysis, technical insight, and in-depth features, giving readers authoritative coverage grounded in decades of firsthand experience at the highest level of the sport.

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