Amended F1 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix starting grid with all late penalties in Sepang applied by the FIA

The FIA has confirmed the official starting grid for the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, and for the first time this year, a driver without a Mercedes engine in their car will sit on pole position.

Max Verstappen took full advantage of his Red Bull team's recent uptick in performance to take an almost comfortable pole position ahead of Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton – the first time he's been on pole alongside his great rival since the infamous Abu Dhabi Grand Prix of 2021.

Unfortunately for the Dutchman, he won't have his team-mate Isack Hadjar in close quarters to help deal with the threat of the fast-starting Ferrari thanks to an engine penalty dropping the French driver down the order after he set the third fastest time.

Hadjar will instead start from eighth, with Kimi Antonelli replacing him directly behind Verstappen on the grid beside Charles Leclerc, himself promoted to the second row by Hadjar's penalty.

There were a couple of other penalties of note, with Franco Colapinto and Arvid Lindblad set to start 21st and 22nd respectively thanks to multiple penalties which see them slide down from 15th and 16th.

Last weekend's polesitter and race winner George Russell could only set the eighth fastest time in Q3 as the Mercedes man's struggle for pace continued. Hadjar's penalty means that he will jump one spot to seventh.

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F1 Starting Grid - 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix

The final starting grid, now officially confirmed by the FIA, is as follows:

*Isack Hadjar has a five-place grid penalty due to taking a new internal combustion engine (ICE).

**Franco Colapinto has a 15-place grid penalty, ten due to taking a new internal combustion engine (ICE) and five for causing a collision at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last time out

***Arvid Lindblad has a 30-place grid penalty due to multiple changes to his power unit.

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Written by

Chris Deeley - Editor

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