(Motorsports news) The much-anticipated Vegas F1 race through the streets of America’s gambling capital got off to a rocky start on Thursday when Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari sustained significant damage after striking a loose water valve cover eight minutes into the first practice session. Track personnel had to remove all 30 covers around the 6.2km circuit and replace them with sand and asphalt, which resulted in a 2h30m delay for FP2.
As a result, the session was abandoned. Due to labor rules and logistical constraints, fans and hospitality guests had already been kicked out of the event by the time second practice started at 2:30 am local time, ruining what could have been F1’s historic entry in its ideal tourist city. The circumstances were explained in a number of statements issued by F1 and the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Fans who only had a Thursday ticket, and thus only saw eight minutes of practice, were given $200 vouchers to spend in the event’s online goods store instead of receiving an apology or a refund. The statement addressed to single-day ticket holders stated, “The safety and security of drivers, fans, and staff alike is the top priority at a Formula 1 race.”
“After the incident with a water valve cover last night at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, F1 and the FIA had to make the tough choice to close the spectator zones before Free Practice 2 started. “Thank you for bearing with us as we fixed the issue. We did not make this decision hastily. We would like to present you a $200 voucher to the Las Vegas Grand Prix Official Shop as a token of our appreciation for your support.
“We look forward to providing a safe and enjoyable race weekend at Las Vegas for everyone now that practice has concluded in full.” More information on the reasons behind the fans’ request to depart at 1:30 am was given by Las Vegas Grand Prix CEO Renee Wilm in a statement that was earlier made public on Friday afternoon. “Our primary concern was the well-being of our long-serving public safety and security officials, who now have three nights of work ahead of them,” the statement stated.
“Secondly, we were worried about our transportation staff members who are in charge of returning our fans to their hotels. They were approaching the maximum amount of time allowed by federal law to operate busses in a safe and lawful manner. Lastly, in order to make sure that everyone had the best possible fan experience over the next several days, our hospitality crew needed to be able to clean and replenish our guest areas.
“We know this was disappointing,” she continued. With this explanation, we hope that our supporters will appreciate that there were a lot of interests to consider, including everyone’s safety and security as well as the overall race weekend experience for spectators. “We have all attended events such as games, concerts, and even other Formula 1 races that were postponed due to inclement weather or technical difficulties. “We hope people will understand that it happens.”
Also read: Wolff: F1’s manhole mishap at the Vegas Grand Prix “not a black eye”
