Carlos Sainz hits loose drain cover on Las Vegas GP track as practice session cancelled
F1’s highly anticipated Las Vegas Grand Prix is back on track after a disastrous opening day had to be suspended to fix a loose manhole cover, as qualifying begins.
The first session of F1’s newest event had only been going for eight minutes before Carlos Sainz’s car stopped on the lengthy Vegas strip. Replays show his Ferrari car, at speeds of over 200mph, went over a loose drain cover before the Spaniard veered to the side and stopped the car due to substantial floor damage, and Ferrari were furious.
FP2 was delayed for more than two hours while the circuit was made safe, before the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Sainz topped the timings, with Max Verstappen only sixth. FP3 then saw Mercedes’ George Russell top the charts ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Pastri and Williams’ Logan Sargeant, with Ferrari way down the results after choosing to preserve their soft tyres.
Follow live updates from the Las Vegas Grand Prix below and check the latest F1 odds and tips here.
Las Vegas GP – qualifying
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F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
16) Lando Norris, McLaren
18) Zhou Guanyu, Alfa Romeo
19) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
20) Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:22
F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
He doesn’t! Piastri is out of Q1, having found himself only 17th after his flying lap. His McLaren teammate Lando Norris is under pressure too, in 15th – and Lance Stroll leaps ahead of him. Norris is out too.
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:20
F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
With only three minutes left in Q1, the five drivers currently in danger of missing Q2 are Zhou, Stroll, Ricciardo, Tsunoda and Piastri, who will surely get out of this…
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:17
F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton’s first flying lap sends him third in the standings behind Sergio Perez and the man way out in front, by about half a second, Charles Leclerc (1:34.072). Although as I write, Verstappen jumps into second spot, just one tenth off Leclerc. Norris, Russell and Sainz and fifth, sixth and seventh in Q1.
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:14
F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
Brad Pitt is in the, erm, pits, with a cabal of celebrities including Rod Stewart and Gordon Ramsay.
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:12
F1 qualifying LIVE – Las Vegas Grand Prix
Charles Leclerc sets the early running in Q1 with a 1:34.898, ahead of Verstappen, Sargeant and Magnussen. The Mercedes were late out of the garage and will be two of the last to set times in this session.
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:08
F1 qualifying – Las Vegas Grand Prix
Q1 is under way! Kevin Magnussen is first out on the track and he will register the first flying lap.
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:05
Alex Albon’s Williams is ready for qualifying
Good news for Alex Albon – Williams have managed to put his car back together, without any major changes, after this shunt and he will be ready for qualifying, which starts any moment…
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 08:00
BREAKING: Lance Stroll receives a five-place grid penalty
The Aston Martin driver is penalised for overtaking under yellow flag conditions.
“The driver of Car 18 stated he had his ‘head down’ looking at his dash and was concentrating on the Ferrari ahead of him and missed the flag.”
Kieran Jackson18 November 2023 07:53
George Russell tops FP3 ahead of qualifying
Then, this morning – or earlier this evening in Vegas – FP3 threw up an interesting set of results. George Russell topped the charts ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Pastri and Williams’ Logan Sargeant, with Ferrari way down the results after choosing to preserve their soft tyres.
So might Max Verstappen’s five-race winning streak be snapped in Sin City?
Lawrence Ostlere18 November 2023 07:52