Russell suffers title blow, retires at Bahrain GP

George Russell retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix with five laps remaining due to an apparent power unit failure while running in third place, dealing a critical blow to his championship hopes. Russell had entered the race already 66 points behind Mercedes teammate and title rival Kimi Antonelli, who extended his lead by finishing ahead. Max Verstappen won the race, which was heavily disrupted by multiple Safety Car periods, including one triggered by Alex Albon's Williams suffering a gearbox failure.