Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has finally won his first race of the Formula One season amid chaotic scenes at the Bahrain Grand Prix, which was held in Malaysia an hour and 40 minutes late due to heavy rain.

Verstappen gained the lead on Sunday after an early safety car and led home the Mercedes of championship leader Kimi Antonelli in second and the Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton in third at the Sepang International Circuit.

But there was agony for George Russell, who had to retire from third place in the second Mercedes with five laps to go when his power unit appeared to fail under a late safety car.

Verstappen was the last driver to win in Sepang in 2017 before it was taken off the F1 calendar, and the Dutchman, who had also taken pole, gave Red ‌‌Bull a huge boost despite an early setback when he lost the lead before turn one.

An eventual standing start saw four-time world champion Verstappen start from pole for the first time this season after dominating practice and qualifying.

But he had a slow getaway on intermediate tyres, allowing the Mercedes pair of Antonelli and Russell to pass him easily in the wet early conditions.

A safety car came out when Valtteri Bottas spun into the gravel on lap nine, and most drivers opted for new slick tyres to take advantage of a rapidly drying track.