The work schedule in Las Vegas allows teams to stay up until the early hours of the morning. Photo: EPA/Caroline Brechman
The November night of December 16, 2023 deserves a place in Formula 1's hall of shame. It's not just that the first £400 million spectacle at the track lasted just eight minutes when Carlos Sainz crashed the Ferrari chassis at 200mph due to a loose hatch cover. The thing is, nearly four hours later, fans were left shivering in the Nevada desert cold with nothing to see as the screeching engines were replaced by the plaintive sound of Don't Leave Me This Way over the public address system.
< p>Max Verstappen is right: The Las Vegas Grand Prix, Formula One's ultimate display of style over substance, is a clown show. The disappointing game under lights ended shortly after 4am local time in front of grimly empty stands, after the second training session became – due to “logistical considerations for our fans and staff” – a fanless event. A few die-hard insomniacs watched from the multi-storey car park opposite the Sphere. The long-suffering mechanics faced the prospect of continuing to work even at dawn.
The few fans who remained after the first training session were sent home before the second training session . Photo: EPA/Etienne Laurent
An event that was so wildly hyped couldn't afford to overpromise and underdeliver. Zac Brown, McLaren's chief executive, called it “the biggest sporting event in the world this year.” Well, let's start with the fact that this is not even the largest car rally in the United States. But before Brown's hyperbole could be properly tested, viewers who had paid at least £400 per view to enjoy the first screening saw marshals inspect the hatches for an hour. By the time this whole terrible farce was over at dawn, all sane people had long since gathered at the blackjack tables.
It's hard to overstate what a terrible PR mistake this is for the sport. Formula One similarly sabotaged itself in 2005 when just six cars started at Indianapolis due to a dispute over tire safety, and it took a decade for the sport's image in the US to recover. Everything about this week in Las Vegas was designed to cleanse the memories of the past: the extravagant drone shows are a far cry from Formula One's last visit to Sin City 41 years ago, when the track extended no further than the Caesar's Palace parking lot. But even with a bottomless budget, the event has become a familiar farce, with officials spending more time promoting the Kylie Minogue concert than ensuring the track is race-ready.
Frederic Vasseur, Ferrari's team principal, was rightly incensed. “Unacceptable,” he said, realizing Sainz could have been killed by suffering such extensive, avoidable damage at such high speed.
More on what happened to Carlos Sainz when he was forced to stop on the track 🔴 pic.twitter.com/uCNTGSFOBr
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) November 17 2023
But, angered by the seriousness of the incident, the FIA moderator did his best to steer the press conference towards what really mattered. “Let's take a broader look at the situation,” he chirped. “I don’t need a bigger picture than that,” Wasser shot back. “But if we could just talk about the Las Vegas Grand Prix, how big it is,” the PR man continued blithely. “Tell me about the activations that Ferrari does here.”
In other words, not to mention a near-death experience. Just feel this sponsorship activation. This is what F1 will do to cover up the incompetence of its ranks. Fortunately, Wasser did not have such a desperate turn of events. “I’m not sure this is the right topic for me today,” he chuckled. Instead, he handed crisis management to his Mercedes colleague Toto Wolff, who quarreled testily with reporters, asking whether this latest buffoonery was a “black eye” for the sport.
It was a perfectly legitimate question but Wolff, who had been linked with the role of Formula One CEO until Stefano Domenicali's appointment in 2020, exploded. “How can anyone even dare to speak ill of an event that sets new standards in everything?” he raged. “You're talking about a loose drain cap. It's nothing. Are we talking about a black eye from Thursday night sports here? Nobody watches it on European time anyway.”
In fact, people were watching, given that the training didn't end until after noon London time. As for Wolf's ridiculous argument that the illegal manhole cover was a sideshow? Inadequate track surfaces were the only reason Formula One's debut on the Las Vegas Strip turned out to be such a sham. As delays increased, it was decided to send everyone home at 1.30 am. An event requiring £120,000 for a corporate hospitality pass couldn't even find staff to keep the stands open – all this in a city where the time of day, as evidenced by the absence of clocks on casino floors, is an afterthought .
It was tempting to imagine Wolf's reaction if one of his own cars had been ruined by bad roads. You suspect he wouldn't defend the honor of Las Vegas as readily. On the other hand, Formula 1 has an almost three-line whip designed to maximize the credibility of the race. Few other than Verstappen speak out of turn or question the whole “Vegas, baby!” fluff. But even the most dedicated evangelists can't hide what a fiasco the last 24 hours have turned out to be.
Formula 1 considers itself the most agile and agile sports giant on the planet. That day he looked more like a clown cart.
Recent Comments