Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur was scathing of Formula 1 after Carlos Sainz’s car was substantially damaged mere minutes into practice in Las Vegas. F1’s newest race started in farcical fashion on Thursday night after first practice was stopped following just eight minutes due to a loose drain cover on the Vegas strip section of the circuit. Sainz’s Ferrari car drove right over the manhole at more than 200mph, causing damage to the floor. The Spaniard stopped his car on the side of the track. The session was red-flagged and Vasseur labelled the incident “unacceptable” in the team principals’ press conference afterwards. “What he [Carlos] said was ‘I hit something on track.’ He didn’t know exactly what it was.,” said Vasseur. “The situation is that we’ve changed the monocoque, the engine, the battery - I think it’s just unacceptable. “We’ve f***ed up the session for Carlos. He won’t be part of FP2 for sure. “We have to change the chassis of the car. I think it’s just unacceptable from F1 today.” More to follow... Read More Las Vegas Grand Prix practice cancelled in farcical start to F1’s newest race F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix LIVE: Practice updates and times in Sin City F1 clothing craze sweeps retailers ahead of Las Vegas Grand Prix

Formula One bosses were dealt a hugely embarrassing blow after first practice for the Las Vegas Grand Prix was cancelled. The running under the lights of the Las Vegas strip was suspended when Carlos Sainz broke down in his Ferrari with just eight minutes on the clock. And then 11 minutes later, at 8:49pm local time, it was announced the session would not be resumed – it emerged Sainz’s failure was caused by a loose manhole cover. Television replays showed Sainz being jolted in his cockpit as the cover struck the underneath of his machine as he approached 200mph on the Las Vegas Boulevard. Esteban Ocon also smashed into the debris – against the backdrop of Caesars Palace, Bellagio and Venetian hotels – causing significant damage to his Alpine. Ferrari described the damage to Sainz’s car as “extensive”, while Alpine said Ocon will require a new chassis. Ferrari team principal Frederic Masseur said: “He (Sainz) said I hit something on track, and he didn’t know what it was. It is just unacceptable for F1.” An FIA spokesperson said: “Following an inspection, a concrete frame around a manhole cover has failed. “We now need to check all of the other manhole covers which will take some time. “We will be discussing with the local circuit engineering team about the length of time it will take to resolve and we will update with any resultant changes to the schedule.” Second practice is due to begin at midnight local time (8:00 GMT). But there are significant doubts if there will be any running today at the 3.8-mile temporary street venue. Speaking on Sky Sports, the highly-respected TV pundit and former driver Martin Brundle, said: “That’s it for today from my experience. “Fixing that and checking everything else, letting it dry and making sure it won’t come out again is going to be a big job. “Theoretically, they are going to re-open the Strip (for public use) after the F1 practice sessions. That is a very, very big issue if there are other areas like that around the track.” The problems of loose manhole covers at street venues is not a new one in the sport. Jenson Button struck a dislodged drain in practice in Monaco in 2016, while George Russell also ran over a drain cover in Azerbaijan four years ago. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said on Sky: “It’s a shame that we are not allowed on track. “They are going to have to check all the manhole covers and weld them or do something because you can see the damage that it has done. “It’s a great shame for the fans but safety comes first. We have got to get this right and hopefully it won’t take too long.” The cancellation of opening practice comes 24 hours after triple world champion criticised the staging of the Las Vegas Grand Prix – the first here in four decades and maiden event on the strip – as “99 per cent show, and one per cent sport”. Read More Toto Wolff fuelled by ‘personal anger’ to help Lewis Hamilton win eighth title On this day in 2010: Sebastian Vettel becomes youngest ever F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton ‘counting down days’ to end of season after another poor race Max Verstappen thwarts Lando Norris’ bid for first F1 win with sprint victory On this day in 2015: Susie Wolff ends her bid to get on an F1 starting grid Lando Norris ‘gutted’ to miss out on Brazilian GP pole after McLaren blunder

Athens has become one of Europe’s hottest housing markets, with apartments in what was once a rundown industrial

Formula One bosses were dealt a hugely embarrassing blow after first practice for the Las Vegas Grand Prix was cancelled. The running under the lights of the Las Vegas strip was initially suspended when Carlos Sainz broke down in his Ferrari with just eight minutes on the clock. And then 11 minutes later at 8:49pm local time, it was announced the session would not be resumed after it emerged Esteban Ocon smashed into a drain cover. An FIA spokesperson said: “Following inspection, it was the concrete frame around a manhole cover that has failed. “We now need to check all of the other manhole covers which will take some time. “We will be discussing with the local circuit engineering team about the length of time it will take to resolve and will update with any resultant changes to the schedule.” Read More Toto Wolff fuelled by ‘personal anger’ to help Lewis Hamilton win eighth title On this day in 2010: Sebastian Vettel becomes youngest ever F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton ‘counting down days’ to end of season after another poor race

The Las Vegas Grand Prix started in farcical fashion on Thursday night as first practice was cancelled due to a loose drain cover on track. FP1 had only been going for eight minutes under the lights before Carlos Sainz’s car stopped on the long Vegas strip. Replays show his Ferrari car went over a loose drain cover before the Spaniard veered to the side and stopped the car. A red flag was thrown and, shortly after, the stewards announced the session would not resume and are now in a race against time to fix the issue on the surface before second practice starts at midnight, local time (8am GMT). The message from race control said: “Session will not be resumed due to track repairs.” Alpine later announced that Esteban Ocon’s chassis would be changed due to damage from the drain cover. It is a shambolic start to the race weekend for Formula 1, who are the sole promoters of the inaugural race on the streets of Sin City. Fans in the grandstands jeered when the news came over the PA system that the session was aborted. More to follow... Read More F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix LIVE: Practice updates and times in Sin City F1 clothing craze sweeps retailers ahead of Las Vegas Grand Prix F1 drivers have their say on $2bn giant orb lighting up Las Vegas Grand Prix

F1 heads to the US again for the highly-anticipated Las Vegas Grand Prix on the world-famous strip and the penultimate race of the 2023 season. Max Verstappen won his 17th grand prix of a sensational season last time out in Brazil, with Lando Norris claiming second place once again and Fernando Alonso clinching third spot ahead of Sergio Perez after a tremendous late battle in Interlagos. Mercedes endured a torrid weekend to forget in Sao Paulo, while Charles Leclerc was forced to retire before the race even began due to a mechanical issue with his Ferrari car. F1 now returns to Vegas for the first time in 41 years for a 50-lap race around the picturesque 3.8-mile, 17-turn circuit. The race has a 10-year contract and will take place under the lights on Saturday night in Sin City. Follow live updates from the Las Vegas Grand Prix with The Independent Read More How Formula 1 cracked America Lewis Hamilton makes F1 ‘circus’ plea after backlash from Las Vegas locals ‘I would not be shocked if King Charles showed up’: Las Vegas opens its doors to Formula One

Colombian singer Karol G won the coveted Album of the Year award for her LP "Manana sera bonito" at Thursday's Latin Grammy Awards, the first...

Raghad Qassem searched all over Iraq's capital Baghdad for a psychologist she could talk to about her problems, before finally...

Baidu Inc., Xiaomi Corp. and Kuaishou Technology report on the heels of talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping

Black Friday is the ultimate time to purchase electronics for both work and play and

If you're texting another iPhone user, iMessage is a great experience. But things fall apart

For the first time, Amazon is going to sell cars, starting with vehicles from Hyundai.