Charles Leclerc (MON) Ferrari SF-23. 16.11.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 22, Las Vegas Grand Prix, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, Practice Day. – www.xpbimages.com, EMail: [email protected] © Copyright: Charniaux / XPB Images
Second practice for the Las Vegas Grand Prix has been delayed to 2am local time (10am GMT) and will be extended to 90 minutes following significant disruption to FP1.
Formula 1’s eagerly anticipated return to Las Vegas came to a halt as FP1 was cancelled after no more than eight minutes of running.
Carlos Sainz was forced to stop on track after running over a loose manhole cover on the Strip which caused significant damage to his car.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur was left irate by the situation as Sainz’s SF-23 had been “damaged completely”, extending to the monocoque, engine and batteries.
Vasseur branded the situation as “unacceptable” with Sainz now set to sit out FP2 as Ferrari face a massive rebuild of the Spaniard’s car.
The Maranello-based team has fitted a new survival cell, internal combustion engine, energy store and control electronics.
Esteban Ocon also picked up significant damage after running over debris which has resulted in Alpine preparing a spare chassis. That work has already been completed and the Frenchman is expected to return to the track for FP2.
The stewards will deliberate the matter further as, under normal circumstances, any changes would result in grid penalties.
It is expected that Ferrari will argue that it should face no penalty for the component changes as any breach comes as a consequence of the substandard track conditions.
It was found that the concrete surrounding a manhole cover had failed when exposed to the physical stress of ground effect F1 machinery,
The FIA has inspected the remainder of the manhole covers around the Las Vegas street circuit and has now confirmed that on-track activity will resume at 2am local time (10am GMT), two hours later than scheduled.
To compensate for the lack of running during the opening practice session, FP2 has been officially extended to a 90 minute session.
The FIA has also said that the third and final practice session will start as scheduled at 20:30 local time on Friday.
Keyword: Las Vegas GP FP2 extended following FP1 disruption