Mercedes driver George Russell believes the track will be a “disaster” in what is shaping up to be a very chaotic start to the Las Vegas Grand Prix (5pm AEDT).
Charles Leclerc will begin the race in pole position and is joined on the front row by world champion Max Verstappen, with Russell just behind them in third.
However, a bizarre problem could cause havoc at the start. Multiple vintage cars being used for the traditional pre-race Drivers Parade broke down and leaked a significant amount of oil onto the track – mostly onto the left side of the grid.
The left side of the grid (those starting in even-number positions, such as Verstappen) could badly struggle for grip.
Formula One journalist Tobi Gruner had already reported that Red Bull believed that the left side of the track would have a significant grip disadvantage for the start – but the oil spill will only make things worse.
“This is going to be a loss of grip, it’s very unfortunate. I don’t know what they’re going to be able to do about it,” Danica Patrick said on Sky Sports.
“It’s on the dirty side of the grid that was always going to be slippery so that’s really bad news for Verstappen and all of those behind him,” Martin Brundle added.
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The order of the starting grid could easily be thrown out the window within a few laps as Russell expects plenty of drivers to deal with tyre graining issues.
Graining occurs when the tyres are lower than the optimal temperature, causing parts of the tyre to rip off and stick to itself which reduces grip.
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Given the temperature in Vegas at the time of race is expected to be around 15 degrees celcius, drivers will have to work overtime to get their tyres heated up.
Russell described the element of graining as the “biggest unknown” going into the Vegas race.
“If you can stay within the threshold of not graining, a one-stop (strategy) will be comfortable,” Russell said.
“But as soon as you start graining the tyres, you have to pit. And I don’t think we’ve done more than 12 laps without graining the tyres.
“So that’s going to be the big challenge.”
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But Russell conceded one team already seems to have figured out the graining issue before the race has even started as the grid gears up for a wild start to the race.
“Ferrari look in a league of their own,” Russell said.
“They haven’t had any graining, and they’ve been super-fast on the high fuel.
“But equally as the track grips up, maybe we’ll see graining in stint one, but you won’t see it in stint two and three, because the track is probably going to be three seconds quicker in the last laps, compared to the early laps. Probably even more.
“Because we’ve got no support series, no nothing. The track’s going to be a disaster in the first five laps of the race.”
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VERSTAPPEN WHACKS VEGAS AGAIN
Meanwhile, Max Verstappen has again taken aim at the Vegas race and its emphasis on the show over the sporting quality.
Verstappen blew up earlier in the week, calling it “99 per cent show and 1 per cent sporting event.”
And he was particularly frustrated with the opening ceremony, where drivers were put on display for the fans, saying: “We are just standing up there looking like a clown.”
Now, he’s had another dig at the glittering new race – comparing its quality to a seventh-tier footballing competition.
Asked how a lap of qualifying in Vegas compared to one at Monaco, he was brutally clear: “I think Monaco is like the Champions League, this is National League.”
“I love Vegas but not to drive in a Formula One car,” he added. “I love to have a few drinks, throw everything on red, have some nice food but emotions, passion? It’s not there compared to some old-school tracks.
“It’s more about the proper race tracks, Spa, Monza. Seeing the fans there is incredible and when I jump in the car I am fired up and I love driving around these places.”
And if that wasn’t enough, he kept his rant up in brilliant style.
“I understand fans need maybe something to do around a track but it is more important to make them understand what we do as a sport,” he said. “Most come to just have a party, drink, see a performance act. I can do that all over the world, I can do Ibiza and get completely shit-faced and have a good time.
“People come here, but they become a fan of what? They want to maybe see their favourite artist and have a few drinks with their mates, and then go out and have a crazy night.
“But they don’t understand what we are doing, and what we are putting on the line to perform. If more time was invested into the actual sport and what we are trying to achieve…”
STARTING GRID FOR LAS VEGAS GP
1st: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
2nd: Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3rd: George Russell (Mercedes)
4th: Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
5th: Alexander Albon (Williams)
6th: Logan Sargeant (Williams)
7th: Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)
8th: Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
9th: Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
10th: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
11th: Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
12th: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
13th: Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)
14th: Daniel Ricciardo (AlphaTauri)
15th: Lando Norris (McLaren)
16th: Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
17th: Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
18th: Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
19th: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
20th: Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
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