The Las Vegas Grand Prix got off to a faltering start but on race day both the contest on track and spectacle off it delivered.
Friday
Barely feeling like I had slept after finishing work as the sun was coming up on Friday morning, and full of a cold, I knew the coming evening and night would be tough.
Grabbing some lunch with a few friends before heading to the track, I still couldn’t get my head around why this event was so much more draining than Singapore’s, despite their similar schedules. Granted, we stay on European time there, but I was really struggling with no daylight or fresh air. To get to any hotel or restaurant you must pass through dingy casinos which blast out air conditioning and music 24-seven. I didn’t expect anything different from Vegas, but it was still a lot to take in.
The city felt busier than it had all weekend as the sun started to set and I headed to the track. There were a lot more people wearing F1 merchandise as I walked along the strip from my hotel next to the Venetian.
After Thursday’s drama, I hoped Friday would be more straightforward as I made the long walk to the media centre for practice. Everyone was still exhausted from the night before.
The media centre was so far from the paddock I made my way down to the pen to interview the first drivers eliminated from Q1 as the session began. There were a few surprises.
Both McLarens unable to reach Q2. The next shock was Lewis Hamilton, who hadn’t been too far off the pace all weekend, did not progress to the final part of qualifying. Red Bull weren’t didn’t look on top form and Sergio Perez again failed to reach Q3. Ferrari looked rapid.
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Cold, wrapped in jackets and scarves, most drivers passed by fairly nonplussed by the session. Logan Sargeant was beaming, however. The American had qualified seventh on track and was clearly thrilled with his performance. It was the first time in a while I saw his jaw unclench while talking and he seemed ecstatic to have done it in front of a home crowd.
The final drivers came through quite quickly, suggesting many drivers were too exhausted and done with the day to talk for long, I dashed into the press conference to see a furious Carlos Sainz Jnr on the sofa, resting a microphone on his lap. He had qualified second, but due to his 10-place grid penalty arising from the repairs done to his car after a drain covering smashed his chassis during practice, he would be mired in the…
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