Carlos Sainz recounts Las Vegas GP memory when a manhole cover wrecked his Ferrari in a ‘blow like an explosion’

Carlos Sainz drove over a loose manhole cover at FP1 of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, cutting the session short while the circuit underwent repairs.

Carlos Sainz recounts Las Vegas GP memory when a manhole cover wrecked his Ferrari in a ‘blow like an explosion’

Carlos Sainz at the Las Vegas Grand Prix (via Sky Sports F1)

One of Carlos Sainz‘s highlights of the 2023 season was an extremely unfortunate one. Despite finishing the qualifying session of the Las Vegas Grand Prix second fastest behind his teammate, he could not make anything of it due to a penalty. The penalty was caused by damage that he incurred from a loose manhole cover that severely affected his car.

The Spaniard was extremely incensed by the incident, as Ferrari had to spend upwards of $2 million and also bear a 10-place grid drop for Sainz for the race. Sainz also said that the accident itself was a major one, affecting both the car and the driver inside. Sainz claimed the bump caused the whole car to endure a huge blow that felt like an explosion.

I was in shock, the blow was like an explosion. And if you see the images from the outside it actually looks like the car explodes.
Carlos Sainz said, as reported by formulapassion.it

Carlos Sainz lost out on valuable points in the Las Vegas GP that became evident in the next and final round. In the points battle between Mercedes and Ferrari for second place in the Constructors’, the Las Vegas GP would have significantly contributed and potentially overturned the results in Ferrari’s favour. Sainz also lost out in the Drivers’ Standings in his bid for fourth place.

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Carlos Sainz uses McLaren 2023 turnaround as example for Ferrari hopes

Ferrari fans have been disappointed for a grand total of 15 years, despite always being around the frontrunners in terms of performance. An initial resurgence in 2022 eventually turned out to be false, as they proceeded to lose both 2022 and 2023 championships to their rivals Red Bull by a huge margin. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc managed a combined total of only seven wins in the two years.

Carlos Sainz
Carlos Sainz (via IMAGO)

However, progress can be disguised behind upcoming upgrades pretty well, as McLaren expertly demonstrated in their comeback campaign in the second half of 2023. Going from backmarkers to frontrunners, they set an example for the rest of the grid. Former McLaren driver Carlos Sainz used this resurgence to insist that Ferrari could take a major step forwards over the winter break.

We've proven that if McLaren has been able to do these steps during the season, I'm perfectly confident that Ferrari can do it over a winter break.
Carlos Sainz said, as reported by motorsport.com

Carlos Sainz managed to give Ferrari some form of restitution to cope with a dismal 2023 season for the Italian team. With a victory at the Singapore Grand Prix, the Spaniard managed to be the sole obstacle between Red Bull and a perfect season, ruining their chance to win every race. Sainz also matched his teammate Charles Leclerc throughout the season, finishing close to the Monegasque in points.

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