Posted on: November 21, 2025, 11:47h.
Last updated on: November 21, 2025, 11:47h.
The Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, which will run its main race Saturday night, was once again disrupted by a loose manhole cover. Thursday night’s second practice session was forced to stop twice and was eventually ended early under red flag conditions.
With 20 minutes left in the session, a marshal for the FIA, the governing body for F1, flagged a potentially loose manhole cover near Turn 17 (adjacent to Virgin Hotels Las Vegas).
Officials inspected the site, then sent cars back out with six minutes on the clock. Yet the problem persisted, with the manhole cover shifting under the weight of passing cars.
A second red flag ended the session outright with two minutes left and the FIA promising continued checks before Friday night’s qualifying race.
Drain-Jà Vu
All thoughts immediately shifted to the inaugural 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix, which was thrown into chaos just eight minutes into its first practice when a loose manhole cover got sucked into Carlos Sainz Jr.’s Ferrari, necessitating a red flag as crews frantically checked all manhole covers along the 3.8‑mile track.
The impact destroyed the car’s floor and damaged the power unit, forcing Ferrari to replace components. In addition, because of F1’s strict rules, the replacement triggered a grid penalty, costing Sainz a front row start and compromising his race weekend.
The fans who paid to watch the session were also penalized. After repairs and inspections dragged on for more than two hours, they were ejected from the stands at 1:30 a.m. (F1 compensated them each with $200 merch vouchers.)
Last year’s practice sessions went off without a hitch, as did Thursday’s first session, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc posting the quickest lap. (McLaren’s Lando Norris, the current F1 points leader, was fastest in the disrupted second session.)
Practice sessions aren’t about determining grid positions. They’re timed rehearsals for teams to test setups, tires and fuel loads. Still, drivers consider the 8 p.m. practice session on Thursday important since it is run at the same time as Friday’s qualifying race and Saturday’s main event.
Man Oh Manhole
Manhole covers are a problem unique to street circuits. While most F1 races are held on permanent, purpose‑built tracks (such as Silverstone, Suzuka, and Monza), six are run, like Las Vegas, on converted public roads where manhole covers and access panels are embedded in the asphalt and must be welded or reinforced before racing.
Though no F1 headline event races were stopped by loose manhole covers, a 2019 practice session at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku was also canceled when George Russell’s Williams Racing FW42 struck one.
