Sepang Hosts Bahrain GP After Middle East War Scraps Sakhir — SkimNews
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- Formula 1 returns to Sepang International Circuit for the first time since 2017, with Malaysia hosting the Bahrain Grand Prix after war in the Middle East scrapped both Bahrain's original race (scheduled April 12 at Sakhir) and Saudi Arabia's.
- A July agreement between Bahrain and Malaysian governments, F1 and the FIA relocated the Bahrain GP over 3,000 miles from Sakhir into a free calendar slot between Azerbaijan and Singapore, with Bahrain covering most of the cost.
- The Sepang International Circuit, designed by Hermann Tilke for the inaugural 1999 Malaysian GP, features 15 turns, two long straights and wide braking zones — and Sky Sports F1's Jamie Chadwick likens it to 'a little bit of China in it, a little bit of Budapest.'
- Malaysia's tropical climate creates punishing humidity and searing track temperatures that hammer tyres, with Lando Norris predicting 'pretty chaotic' racing similar to Monza and Kimi Antonelli flagging heavy rain and possible two-to-three pit stops.
- Lewis Hamilton has raced at Sepang 11 times and won once in 2014, while Max Verstappen was the 2017 winner; 10 of the 2026 grid's 22 drivers have prior F1 experience there, leaving Norris (sim-only) and Antonelli (aged 11 in 2017) as Sepang F1 rookies.
Why it matters: For the first time since 2017, Sepang's 15-turn layout challenges 2026's hybrid-era cars in punishing tropical humidity. Norris notes the cars' battery limits flatten two signature high-speed corners, and Antonelli predicts severe tyre wear forcing two-to-three stops. The Bahrain-Malaysia swap preserves F1's 22-race calendar after the Middle East war erased both Gulf races.
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