Carlos Sainz calls for Formula 1 to examine itself after unprecedented software failures delayed Malaysia race.

Carlos Sainz said Formula 1 needs to have a hard look at itself following software glitches that affected the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. The Williams driver and Grand Prix Drivers' Association director criticized the sport's direction after multiple cars suffered power unit failures during formation laps, forcing a 90-minute delay.

A software bug in wet-weather engine mapping prevented cars from accelerating during formation laps, with the FIA distributing emergency fixes to resolve the crisis. Sainz questioned decisions made five years ago that led to extremely complicated regulations for drivers, teams, power units and manufacturers.

The Spaniard argued that while the FIA and Formula 1 are doing their best with current regulations, the fundamental direction chosen years ago was wrong. He emphasized the need for the sport to learn from these mistakes and avoid repeating them in future rule-making.

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies agreed that complexity should not get out of hand, calling the incident a reminder to keep systems under control. The software problems arose because wet-weather running had been limited this year, meaning the specific circumstances triggering the bug had not been encountered previously.