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F1 marshal goes viral in brilliant photo as Bahrain GP start delayed - and the memes write themselves

George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team under an umbrella on the grid prior to the F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain in Malaysia at Sepang Circuit on October 04, 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

A Formula One marshal is going viral in a brilliant photo after keeping entertaining the crowd as the start of the Bahrain GP in Malaysia is delayed.

Because of the conflict in the Middle East, the scheduled Bahrain GP at Sakhir in April was postponed. The race was rescheduled for the weekend of 2-4 October but in a different location.

The race is taking place at the famous Sepang circuit in Malaysia, a driver and fan favourite, and is still being branded as the Bahrain GP.

The race was due to start at 8am BST (3am PT / 12midnight ET) but was delayed because of heavy rain, meaning it was too wet for the cars to safely race.

While the fans were waiting for the race to start, marshals were out on track brushing some of the water off the tarmac.

And one has gone viral after being spotted riding his broom while jumping in the air - and the memes have been writing themselves.

On a post in the Formula One Subreddit, one said: "You're a marshal, Harry."

"Expecto Petronas," added a second.

A third declared: "The timing of this photo is sending me."

"Let them race on brooms," a fourth pleaded.

And a fifth said: "F1 Quidditch would sell out."

At the time of writing, the start of the Bahrain GP in Malaysia is still delayed after the cars went out for formation laps behind the safety car to see what conditions were like - but chaos ensued as cars went off or failed, delaying the start of the race again.

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