Hamilton and Verstappen both right about Las Vegas after deeply flawed F1 event
After half-a-billion dollars were spent on this Las Vegas Grand Prix show, all it took was a simple hunk of metal to derail everything.
The drain cover that smashed up Carlos Sainz's car in practice also did extensive damage to this new showpiece event. And it was the last thing that Formula 1 needed after betting the house on Vegas.
Teething problems are to be expected in the first year of any major new event. This street circuit has been created and the paddock buildings and pits all constructed and solely for this event. It was a huge undertaking, and therefore just as big of a shame to watch that complete mess unfold on Thursday night.
In case you missed it, the drain cover that came loose and smashed up Sainz's Ferrari led to five hours of circuit works before second practice got under way at 2.30am, by which time the fans who had paid a fortune to be there had all been sent home over "logistical concerns".
Things went better on Friday for third practice and qualifying. And the main event on Saturday night was an absolute triumph - a very exciting race with a genuine battle to win it, even though it was Max Verstappen who once again did, against that glorious backdrop of the Las Vegas skyline and in the company of pretty much every A-lister you could think of.
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So you can look at it in two ways. It's either a real shame that what turned out to be a really good display of exciting F1 action was marred by the farce on the first day of track running - or it's great that the event was able to recover from an apocalyptically bad first act to deliver a show-stopping performance.
In reality, both are true. As fun as the race was, it didn't fully banish memories of the practice shambles. Those fans who were kicked out before they could watch practice on Thursday night haven't forgotten about it either, evidenced by whispers of a potential class-action lawsuit against the event.
Not everyone will be a fan of all the 'glamour' around the racing, least of all Verstappen. On a personal note, I initially agreed with him that everything about it hinted at it being "99 percent show and one percent sport", but the excitement of the race itself eventually led to a more balanced equation. I'd say it was probably about 60-40, though still in favour of the hype rather than the substance.
But, crucially, there was some substance. Not every driver finished the race happy, of course, as their moods depended on how it went for them, but every one of them enjoyed the racing element including Lewis Hamilton who endured horrible luck and yet was beaming afterwards having had so much fun. Even Verstappen admitted that the track he had previously panned had allowed for good racing.
Vegas has a three-year contract but local officials have already voted to allow up to 10 years of this disruption to the city's roads. Hamilton was right to an extent when he said that this first running of the event had proved the doubters wrong. And things should get easier in terms of organising future editions, now that the infrastructure has been built and learnings can be taken from this year.
Many were critical of this event including myself and the negative voices only grew louder after the issues in the early part of the race weekend. But, credit where it is due, F1 put on a real show in Las Vegas and it may yet prove to be a stand-out event on the annual calendar for the right reasons.
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