FIA director links Sepang pre-start stoppage to low-speed software bug

Rain had already delayed the start when Verstappen first lost power on the safety-car formation laps. Hamilton then came to a stop and several other cars followed, prompting race control to halt proceedings with a red flag. After the race, Tombazis said a software bug at very low speeds blocked power from being redeployed, leaving affected cars unable to get moving again; he linked the fault to the wet-weather reduction in electrical power to 250 kW. During the stoppage, the FIA lifted the energy-limit restriction in affected mini-sectors and teams installed modified software before the restart. Tombazis said the update had not been tested. Motorsport.com reported that the FIA had no formal explanation for the apparent effect on the internal-combustion engine; an initial suggestion was that the bug redirected all throttle input to recharging the MGU-K. [1]