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Ferrari

Vasseur plans 'private discussions' with Las Vegas organisers over Sainz damage

The damage sustained by Carlos Sainz during the opening practice session will be discussed between Ferrari and stakeholders of the race.

Sainz Las Vegas
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Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur plans to hold 'private discussions' with the Las Vegas Grand Prix stakeholders, after damage sustained by Carlos Sainz during Free Practice 1.

The opening practice session in Nevada lasted nine minutes before it was red-flagged after Sainz hit a dislodged water valve cover on the Strip after the concrete frame failed due to the forces of the cars running over it.

It was abandoned, with FP2 finally going ahead two-and-a-half hours late, without fans, in an embarrassing start to the weekend.

The damage to Sainz's SF-23 was severe, with the monocoque, Internal Combustion Engine, Control Electronics and Energy Store all being written off - with Vasseur going on a diatribe during the subsequent press conference, calling it "unacceptable."

Sainz was handed a 10-place grid penalty for a new ES as the stewards could not waive the sanction for taking new engine components beyond the permitted allocation, and finished sixth as pole-sitting team-mate Charles Leclerc bagged second.

Vasseur: I'm upset with how they managed it

Tracks have previously had to pay out to teams if they have been the main cause of damage, with the Malaysian Grand Prix circuit having to do this for Romain Grosjean after he hit a loose drain in 2017.

When asked about whether Ferrari will get any compensation for the incident, Vasseur explained to media, including RacingNews365: "This will be a private discussion that I will have with all the stakeholders.

"I'm a bit more upset with the way they managed it, than with the incident itself.

"We've had an incident in the past where even in Monaco at the top of the circuit two or three years ago, I think on the kerb at Turn 1.

"It was also the case in Malaysia, you had the case two times in Baku with [Valtteri] Bottas [in 2016] and [George] Russell [in 2019].

"This is difficult to anticipate and to fix, but the way you manage the incident is important."

F1 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix RN365 News dossier

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