Formula 1’s return to Las Vegas!
Formula 1’s return to Las Vegas started on Thursday with a grand opening ceremony, but there was much less celebration during the first practice session for the Las Vegas GP. Due to a loose manhole cover, the practice session was stopped after ten minutes and urgent repair work and safety inspections are underway on the street circuit.
Today the time had finally come, for the first time since 1982 an official F1 session took place in Las Vegas on a brand new F1 circuit that passes several well-known casinos and of course the famous ‘Las Vegas Strip’. Formula 1 organizes the race itself, built a brand new pit building and created a huge hype around the event.
At 8:30 PM local time the time had come and the first F1 cars entered the circuit, but barely ten minutes into the session we immediately received a red flag: Carlos Sainz parked his Ferrari at the side of the track . The Spaniard clearly had a problem with the car, although it was not immediately clear what was going on.
The track marshals did not really get the Spaniard’s Ferrari away quickly, something that should go more smoothly during qualifying and the race. There is work to be done for the organisers, who in this case are Formula 1 itself. But there was still more work to be done as what Formula 1 initially made out to be ‘a bump in the circuit that stalled Carlos Sainz’s F1 engine’ ultimately turned out to be a much more serious problem with the circuit.
A manhole cover had come loose and damaged Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari F1 car. Esteban Ocon’s Alpine F1 car also suffered serious damage. The race management raised the red flag and after just ten minutes the first practice session of the Las Vegas GP was finally over.
Sainz’s damaged car. — © AP
The broken parts of Sainz’s car. — © Getty Images via AFP
The manhole cover will have to be re-secured and it is highly uncertain whether the proposed schedule of sessions can be completed as planned. The FIA and the race management must now check all manhole covers to determine whether it is safe to drive. The first inspections showed that there are also problems with various other manhole covers. A blow for Formula 1, which this time cannot point an accusing finger at an organizer or owner of a circuit, but has to look at itself. Let’s wait and see whether the second practice session can start as planned at midnight local time, 9 a.m. Belgian time.
More F1 news:
- Max Verstappen after the opening ceremony of the Las Vegas GP: “I’m standing here like a clown on a podium!”
- F1 pilot launches nude calendar and immediately gains many extra fans
- Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone lashes out at Las Vegas GP: “This has nothing to do with Formula 1!”
- Iconic Ferrari from 1962 auctioned: second most expensive car ever
- VIDEO: A lap around the Las Vegas F1 circuit