Loose drain cover causes chaos in Las Vegas two years later

Lando Norris set the fastest time in FP2 at the Las Vegas GP, a session marked by chaos and two red flags that the FIA tried to explain without quite succeeding.

Kimi Antonelli, Charles Leclerc and Nico Hulkenberg finished behind the championship leader, but the times are to be thrown in the trash directly, as some cars managed to do their lap with softs and others stayed with the initial mediums. In any case, for Norris it is very positive to finish on top in a race in which he arrived with well-founded fears of suffering. The McLarens have improved on this Las Vegas street circuit and Lando could be close to securing the title.

Verstappen finished ninth, but that is not to be taken into account either. He was third on the initial mediums, although behind Norris as well. He had final braking problems and was not as comfortable as expected.

Another manhole cover

20 minutes from the end and coincided with the jumping of a drain cover,2023Carlos' Ferrari sucked it up suddenly,

even the outer ring in which the metal was sealed, and

the piece cut below the floor of his car, inches from one of his legs.

It won't happen in Madring

The disparity of criteria in F1 is not only in the penalties for drivers. When it comes to awarding new races to some, such as Madrid, the organisers' teeth are checked, while in others, such as Miami or Las Vegas, they were rushed through despite serious safety problems with the track and the walls, which two years later are still much the same.

In the new Madring (11-13 September 2026) there will be no such problems, as Dromo and Ifema have taken great care to ensure that there is not a single manhole cover on the track. The American standard has never been the safest for motorsport. Just look at some Indycar tracks and you can see that they are in another millennium in terms of safety.

The key moment of the session

It was the crucial moment of the session, with several drivers on their fast lap on the softs, including Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz, as well as Russell and others. The session resumed with 7 minutes to go, but there was time for very little.

After that, and with two minutes to go, the red flag was raised again, this time because the same manhole cover was moving, something that was later confirmed. It is unacceptable for those responsible, for the promoter, or for the supervisor. A fiasco at an event where tickets cost several thousand dollars.

Sainz 13th and Alonso 18th

Carlos and Fernando saw their decisive laps cut short and had to settle for 13th and 18th respectively, although as in the rest they are not representative in a session in which, except for a slight drizzle, the rain held off until the end.

With the initial medium tires, Sainz was 10th and Alonso 18th, almost on a par with Stroll who was 16th. Only the two Saubers seemed to be behind the Astons, confirming that Fernando's prediction a few weeks ago was spot on. "In Vegas we will be penultimate or last,"

he said, and he was not wrong.