"It's just unacceptable": Ferrari boss fumes as Carlos Sainz's car suffers severe damage from the drain cover

Ferrari team boss Frederic Vasseur was not happy with how Carlos Sainz's SF-23 was majorly damaged in FP1 of the 2023 F1 Las Vegas GP.

In the first few minutes of the first-ever race session on the new Vegas street track, Sainz's Ferrari was hit by a drain cover that was initially dislodged from it's position by another car. When the Spaniard went over it, the cover came out and severely damaged the underbody of his car, causing the session to be red-flagged and cancelled.

Speaking to the media after an early FP1 end, Vasseur reportedly stated how Sainz's car encountered damage to the monocoque, engine, and battery. He went on to add how unacceptable it is and how much money it will cost the team to fix all the issues. The Italian team's principal also claimed that Sainz will not be a part of FP2 as well.

"We damaged completely the monocoque, the engine, the battery. I think it’s just unacceptable. It cost us a fortune. We f*cked up the session for Carlos. We won’t be part of FP2 for sure. I think it’s just unacceptable for F1 today," Vasseur said.

Right after the session was red-flagged, the FIA stewards and track marshals arrived at the spot where Sainz's car broke down. After seeing the open drain, they immediately cancelled the first practice session of the Las Vegas GP and started discussing how this issue could be resolved.

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Carlos Sainz feels Las Vegas track can suit Ferrari

Before his DNF from FP1, Carlos Sainz was quite confident about Ferrari's performance in the Las Vegas GP. Since the new track had similarities to the Monza and Singapore ones, the Spaniard was hopeful that his team would have better opportunities in Vegas.

“[I have] better hope than recently mainly because the track looks probably a bit more suited to us than recent tracks,” he told the media, including Sportskeeda.

“Long straights like in Monza, tight corners, like in Monza or Singapore. Maybe there's the combination of Turn 1 and 2 where we will not be very quick. But then the rest of the track I think our car should be better suited than recent events. And hopefully, that gives us a better opportunity,” Sainz added.

Although the standings at the end of FP1 does not determine the actual speed and performance of cars, Carlos Sainz's teammate Charles Leclerc topped the charts during the short nine-minute session before it was red-flagged.