Recent heavy rain and standing water at Sepang delayed the Bahrain Grand Prix start by 40 minutes, forcing formation laps behind the safety car on intermediates under the new 2026 power unit regulations. Multiple cars, including those of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, suffered suspected software-related power unit failures at low speeds, prompting race control to abort the procedure and display a red flag. This marks the first wet running under the revised technical rules, with limited prior data on wet-tire performance and hybrid system behavior in tropical conditions. An earlier FP3 red flag from debris further highlighted circuit and car vulnerabilities, supporting trader consensus around even odds for at least one race red flag.