The first free practice session of the Las Vegas GP started and ended after just 9 minutes of running. The problem was with one of the drain covers that was not sealed properly on the Las Vegas Strip.
Coming down the Las Vegas Strip. drivers are traveling at over 200 miles per hour. This is not the speed the Las Vegas Strip is used to enduring. During the construction process, the organizers did what they could to seal the drain covers on track. However, the efforts taken by them do not seem to be enough. After just 9 minutes of running, one of the drain covers on the Las Vegas Strip caused damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
F1 has cancelled the first practice session of the first ever Las Vegas Grand Prix due to a loose drain cover 😳 pic.twitter.com/hLcP1VHfED
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) November 17, 2023
Initially, a yellow flag was deployed, but soon it turned into a red flag as there was a problem on track that could not be sorted out within 30 minutes. Since this drain cover failed and damaged a car, all the drain covers on the track will have to be inspected and corrected if necessary by the FIA. Or else, the cars and drivers will be in danger during every lap on the circuit.
As soon as Carlos hit the bump, his engine stopped and he had to park the car immediately on the side of the road. After inspection, Ferrari will definitely find damage to Sainz’s car. Due to this, every inch of the track will be under inspection by the FIA. They will need to complete their checks and corrections before the start of the 2nd Free Practice session which will take place at 3:00 ET. So the FIA just has 3 hours from the incident to fix the track.
Esteban Ocon victimized by drain covers on unexplored Las Vegas GP circuit
While Carlos Sainz seemed to be the only victim, it was later told that even Esteban Ocon suffered damage to his chassis one of the drain covers. It is not clear if the drain cover that victimized Esteban Ocon is the same one that hit Sainz as well. However, it looks as though Ocon hit something on the same straight as Carlos Sainz.
The FIA will be hoping that the issue is not widespread and is an isolated incident. Or else, they might not have enough time to fix the track before the next session. If the track turns out to have a lot of issues, they will need to delay the start of the 2nd free practice session to give time to the FIA. As it is, FP2 is set to start at 00:00 local time. So any further delays may be too late for the drivers and teams and even the spectators and locals surrounding the track.
On-board with Esteban Ocon as Alpine confirm they will change the chassis on his car after damage in FP1 👇 pic.twitter.com/D9B6FCMGjb
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) November 17, 2023
The red-flagged FP1 has thrown another huge spanner in the works for the drivers as they venture out onto a new track. Since none of the drivers have much experience going around the Las Vegas Street Circuit, they would have been looking to utilize the entire 3 hours of Practice. However, that time has now been cut short to 2 hours now.
There will be complete chaos in the track during the next 2 practice sessions. All the teams and drivers will need to get as much data as possible in preparation for the qualifying and the race. The team will also have to see how the car and tires react to the weather. It will be interesting to see how the teams approach the remaining 2 free practice sessions.