The Las Vegas GP has its first-ever victim with McLaren’s Lando Norris crashing out of the race in Lap 3 of the race in cold conditions. After not being able to make it to Q2, the Briton knew he had to push as hard as he could to be able to secure a points finish in the 50-lap race. However, the high-risk, high-yield approach ended in disaster for the 24-year-old.
The crash was a big one, with parts of Norris‘ McLaren flying all over the place (clip uploaded on X by Yahoo Sports). The Briton went into the barriers hard and heavy but was thankfully unharmed, as he confirmed over the radio. The Debris from Norris’ car even hit Lewis Hamilton‘s car, which was right behind him, but the damage was minimal for the 38-year-old.
While it was a quick start for the McLaren cars, the same wasn’t the case for the rest of the grid. With oil dumped on the track from the opening ceremony, the teams had to adjust their starting strategies. Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso thought about taking advantage of the open part on the track but paid the price as he immediately spun out and allowed others to easily overtake him.
Looking to secure his first win from the last 11 pole positions, Charles Leclerc had another poor start to the race. The Monegasque lost his lead 200 meters into the race, with Max Verstappen running him off the track. The Dutchman has a 5-second penalty for the incident but did not have to concede the place for an illegal maneuver.
With Lando Norris out of the race, fans have had enough of the chaos of the Las Vegas GP
After so much went down in the much-anticipated Las Vegas GP, fans of Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz have had enough of the Las Vegas GP, as was evident on the social media platform X.
carlos started p12 to end up on p16 and now lando norris in the barriers… end the las vegas grand prix now 😭pic.twitter.com/St49ITrg4g
— ً (@forsainz) November 19, 2023
Carlos spun, Lando crashed, Charles lost the lead. I hate it here pic.twitter.com/kW32apByzC
— Mari (@very_berry99) November 19, 2023
Meanwhile, a few Norris fans highlighted their heartbreak over the crash.
god, that lando crash literally just drained all the life in me, i don’t think i have the energy or the capacity to continue watching this race like i always do…
— ❦ (@chalamieczyslaw) November 19, 2023
man this rarely happens with lando like he is rarely involved in any crashes or incidents on track and then this happens to him that sucked to watch aaaghhhhhhhhh
— andy (@iiiuminateandy) November 19, 2023
One fan pointed out how the Las Vegas GP was still potentially unsafe.
So Oscar engineer said Lando hitted a bump, the car bottomed out and he lost it.
This is so unsafe wtf
— Pablo (@BloopGG) November 19, 2023
Occurring after much backlash, the Las Vegas GP was off to a chaotic start with cars spinning around left and right. As such, the expectations and predictions of experts and pundits before the race, all stand true. With a 10-year deal with Las Vegas, the authorities might have to adjust the timings of the race in the coming seasons to keep the fans interested in the race and ensure the safety of their drivers.
