Carlos Sainz saw his Ferrari destroyed by a manhole cover that came loose during the first free practice of the Las Vegas Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Despite being a track safety issue, which did not have ideal conditions, the stewards were not sympathetic and maintained a ten-place penalty for exceeding the maximum number of energy storage units in order to resolve the damage. So, instead of taking advantage of second place on the grid, he will start from 12th.
Quoted by the website PlanetF1.com, the Spanish Ferrari driver did not hide his disappointment with what happened: ‘There was clearly a safety problem on the track; that safety problem destroyed my car. My mechanics had to invest five hours to assemble a completely new car and, in addition, we received a ten-place penalty on the grid for something we have nothing to do with. I am simply disappointed. At the same time, I am not surprised, because there have been several cases this year that I believe this sport has shown that it can do many things better. I think I am surprised that the governing body does not have the power to, in cases of force majeure, say override the rules a bit in this type of situation where it is clear that it is something completely beyond the control of the team and the driver. The rules, the governing body, the teams… I don’t know, I expected more from the sport in this situation’.
On the other hand, Sainz expressed disappointment that there are teams insisting on his penalty, even speaking of being angry with the situation: ‘There will be rival teams pushing for me to be penalized, which in a way surprises me. On the other hand, I have been in this sport for too long to understand that this is business. There is a lot of money involved in the final position in the constructors’ championship or whatever for a team not to threaten to ask for a penalty for me. At the same time, as I said, I am not surprised. I am extremely disappointed and very angry with the whole situation, with the sport. I am very angry, that is the right word, I am simply in a bad mood because I expected more’.
