The opening practice day at Sepang delivered plenty of good Formula 1 action, enthusiastic fans and a fantastic atmosphere. The rain stayed away, and the circuit provided some tremendous backdrops for photography.

But getting people to the track, getting them home and keeping them supplied with water proved much more difficult. Traffic, bus organization and access to drinking water were the major concerns at the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, with the heat making those problems particularly uncomfortable.

Traffic Turned Short Journeys Into Long Delays

A hotel-to-circuit journey that normally takes 15 minutes stretched to just over 1 hour. From Kuala Lumpur, a trip that would ordinarily take about 1 hour was taking roughly 2.5 hours. At one point, covering just 250 m took around 40 minutes.

The congestion was particularly heavy around one roundabout. Plenty of people arrived late for the first practice session, although the drivers made it on time thanks to police escorts.

Liam Lawson had questioned the need for an escort on Thursday’s media day, when the roads were quiet. By Friday, its value was rather obvious. The traffic situation had changed completely.

Traffic was not an entirely unexpected problem. Before the opening practice day, an event organizer had already identified it as the biggest challenge. It has long been a concern around this circuit, and anyone relying on a normal journey time was at risk of being caught out.

Sepang’s proximity to Kuala Lumpur International Airport added another complication. People carrying luggage were seen walking beside the freeway, apparently deciding that continuing on foot would be quicker than remaining in traffic. Whether anyone missed a flight was not confirmed, but the congestion clearly extended beyond race attendance.

After the final practice session, large groups were also walking away from the circuit at dusk beside moving vehicles. Traffic on that road typically travels at around 60 to 70 km/h, making the mixture of pedestrians and cars a worrying sight. Where all those people were heading was unclear.

Bus arrangements attracted complaints too. One report described a well-organized morning trip from the airport followed by a chaotic afternoon. Other messages raised similar concerns about shuttle services.

Saturday’s reduced commuter traffic offered some hope of relief, but any operational improvements still needed to be demonstrated. The practical lesson from Friday was straightforward: allow substantially more time than the usual journey requires.

Water Access Was a Serious Concern in the Heat

The price of water was not the main issue. A bottle cost 4 ringgit, approximately US$1. The difficulty was getting it.

Fans reported queues of up to 30 minutes to buy water. It is also reported that there were no water refill stations available and that empty bottles had been taken away at entry. Another attendee described the same bottle restriction.

Those are attendee reports rather than a verified inventory of every facility at Sepang. Nevertheless, they pointed to an urgent problem: people were struggling to obtain drinking water quickly on a very hot day.

The first practice session, beginning at 12:30 p.m., was particularly punishing in the sun. Gabriel Bortoleto described the conditions over team radio as the hottest he had experienced, even exceeding FP1 in Bahrain.

The obvious comparison was the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix. That race produced severe physical distress, with Lance Stroll needing assistance after leaving his car, drivers suffering nausea and vomiting, and Logan Sargeant retiring because he was close to fainting.

Sepang was not necessarily heading toward a repeat of that night. Drivers now have the option of wearing cooling suits, providing an additional way to manage the heat. Even so, the conditions made ready access to water essential for everyone spending hours outdoors.

Affordable water is only useful if people can obtain it without a lengthy wait. Improving availability and clarifying bottle-entry rules were among the most pressing needs for the remaining 2 days.

Fans Still Created a Tremendous Atmosphere

Despite the difficulties, the public areas behind the grandstands were lively and generally cheerful. There were queues after the sessions, as expected when large numbers leave their seats at once, but the overall mood remained positive.

Food choices were plentiful. Water access was the conspicuous weakness in an otherwise enjoyable fan area.

Many people had brought umbrellas, perhaps anticipating rain. With the rain staying away, those umbrellas became valuable protection from the sun instead. Across the exposed concourse, portable shade was very welcome.

There was another type of hardworking fan outside the Racing Bulls hospitality suite: a collection of pedestal fans running in the heat. They were hardly decorative extras in those conditions.

Ticket sales appeared strong, although the event had not sold out at the time of the Friday evening check. There were still 3 ticket categories available. Organizers had asked for patience when entering the circuit, reflecting the pressure on access arrangements.

The crowd’s enthusiasm was one of the day’s clear positives. The challenge was to make the basic logistics match the experience once people reached their seats.

Why It Is the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia

The event’s name understandably prompted questions. The cars were racing at Sepang, so why was it called the Bahrain Grand Prix rather than the Malaysian Grand Prix?

The explanation given for this event was that Bahrain was paying for it while choosing to stage it in another country. Malaysia provided the venue, but the race retained its Bahrain Grand Prix identity.

That arrangement was also reflected in the preparations for Sunday’s pre-race ceremony. Both national anthems were scheduled to be played, and Friday evening’s preparations offered a preview of 2 national flags laid out on the grid.

It was an unusual sight, not something familiar from 9 years of photographing Formula 1.

Malaysia’s prime minister visited the circuit on Thursday for a walkthrough and attracted considerable attention from the local media. A large celebrity turnout was considered unlikely, but that visit was a notable part of the opening days.

How Drivers Cooled Down Between Sessions

The paddock had a lovely atmosphere, especially as the sun set at one end in the evening. A night race would have been an appealing prospect, both visually and for the possibility of cooler conditions, but this was a daytime event.

For the drivers, recovery between sessions was important. Alex Albon used an ice bath behind the Williams hospitality suite after the first practice session, then made a quick return to his driver’s room behind the garage wearing a towel.

His race suit was being carried by trainer Patrick Harding. Asked about the laundry arrangements, Harding explained that Albon had 6 suits available: 1 for each session and a spare. The used suit would be laundered later.

Carlos Sainz followed shortly afterward. To be clear, he was wearing normal shorts, rather than a towel.

Not every clothing detail was about keeping cool. Arvid Lindblad’s jeans featured distinctive embroidery on the back, one of those small paddock details that can easily escape notice.

Nico Hülkenberg’s red trainers attracted attention for another reason. They appeared to be 1 or 2 sizes larger than his feet. There was no opportunity to ask him about the fit, so the reason remained unknown.

Press Conference Surprises and Paddock Personality

Thursday’s press conference brought an unexpected change for Oliver Bearman. Before proceedings began, he noticed Rachel Brookes in the interviewer’s chair and asked why she was there.

Tom Clarkson was in Australia on a speaking tour with Damon Hill, a commitment that had been arranged before this surprise race was added. Brookes was standing in for him.

For Bearman, it was a departure from a very familiar routine. He explained that Clarkson had conducted all his previous press conference interviews across both F2 and F1. Brookes handled the role very well.

Elsewhere, brightly dressed roller skaters brought a splash of color to the paddock. Their precise purpose was not clear, but they certainly attracted attention and were popular with people nearby.

There were also some lovely photographic moments outside the Mercedes garage. A young Mercedes driver played up to the camera alongside his photographer, Giacomo, known as Jack. Their lighthearted interaction drew a reaction from the grandstand opposite, where fans could see what was happening.

George Russell’s support was especially striking. The proportion of Russell fans appeared exceptionally high, perhaps even greater than at Silverstone. Petronas’s Malaysian connection gives Mercedes something of a home-race atmosphere at Sepang, but Russell’s individual popularity was unmistakable.

On Thursday, a large crowd waited in the hope of meeting him. When he appeared, the response was enormous. He would head toward Sunday hoping to secure back-to-back victories.

Practice Action and Sepang’s Standout Photography Spots

Max Verstappen arrived for Thursday’s media day after traveling by private jet, wearing a plain shirt without team logos and no cap. It was an unusually unbranded paddock appearance. On Friday, he arrived with his father, Jos.

Verstappen then set the fastest time in the first practice session, although he complained about discomfort associated with his seat. The precise source of that discomfort was not clear from the commentary, but it was something for the team to address before Sunday’s race in the heat.

For track photography, 2 obvious locations stood out during the day’s work with my son, Jace:

• Turn 2 and the huge Malaysian flag: Different shooting angles allowed the flag to fill the background behind the cars, giving the photographs an unmistakable sense of place.
• The sail-like grandstand roofs: Sepang’s distinctive canopy structures provided a tremendous architectural backdrop, whether framed broadly or incorporated into a panning shot.

These are backgrounds that do more than decorate a racing photograph. They immediately distinguish Sepang from other circuits and capture something of the destination alongside the on-track action.

The cars approaching the hairpin were particularly impressive from ground level. Friday offered enough to suggest an entertaining Sunday, with plenty of room for surprises.

Overall, it was a good day at the circuit with some significant operational shortcomings. The atmosphere, food options, enthusiastic support and racing were strong positives. The immediate priorities remained traffic management, reliable buses and quicker access to water. Addressing those issues would make a substantial difference to the rest of the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend in Malaysia.