Verstappen wins Malaysia race as Russell retires and Antonelli extends lead

Max Verstappen won the Formula 1 race in Malaysia on Sunday, securing his first victory of the season as George Russell’s retirement strengthened Kimi Antonelli’s championship lead. Antonelli finished second for Mercedes, while Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton took third after passing Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar. Russell stopped with five laps remaining while running behind Verstappen and Antonelli under the safety car.

Mercedes told Antonelli by radio that Russell appeared to have suffered a power-unit problem. His retirement increased Antonelli’s advantage over his teammate from 66 points to 84, with seven races remaining, including events in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Verstappen had not won since the final race of the previous season.

Upgrades to his Red Bull made him more competitive in Malaysia, although he lost places at the start after the wet-weather race was delayed. Heavy rain postponed the start by 40 minutes, and the formation lap was then interrupted when cars appeared to encounter software problems. After racing began, Verstappen recovered and passed Russell before overtaking Antonelli in a side-by-side fight following a safety-car restart.

The event was moved to Malaysia because of the Iran war and marked Formula 1’s first race at Sepang since 2017. The next race is scheduled for Singapore on October 11. Hamilton’s podium ended a run of five races without one for Ferrari.

He and teammate Charles Leclerc had started on dry-weather tyres as the track dried, a gamble that initially sent them towards the back. Leclerc finished fourth, followed by Hadjar. Oscar Piastri, Liam Lawson, Fernando Alonso, Lando Norris and Arvid Lindblad completed the top 10.