The Las Vegas Grand Prix had a bumpy start as the first practice session on the new circuit was called off after just nine minutes due to a loose drain cover. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz hit the cover, causing his vehicle to stop and leading to a red flag. The front of his car was damaged, and the session was not resumed after some delay.
The International Motoring Federation (FIA) stated, “Following inspection, it was the concrete frame around a manhole cover that has failed. We now need to check all of the other manhole covers which will take some time.”
A second practice session was scheduled, and organisers faced a tight timeline to make the necessary checks and repairs. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc had posted the fastest lap with a time of 1:40.909.
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur expressed frustration, saying, “We won’t be part of FP2 for sure. I think it’s just unacceptable for F1 today.”
Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff reacted strongly to a question from a reporter about the incident, dismissing it as insignificant and emphasizing the need to prevent such incidents in the future.
Esteban Ocon’s Alpine also suffered damage, and the team had to start changing the chassis on his car.
A similar incident occurred at the 2019 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and Thursday’s opening practice was the first time the new circuit had been raced upon.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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