P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Sainz set for F1 Las Vegas GP grid penalty after track manhole cover incident
The first F1 race weekend on the famous Strip was disrupted when Esteban Ocon hit a water valve cover, causing damage to his Alpine and forcing a red flag in FP1. Carlos Sainz also ran over the same loose cover, damaging his Ferrari. As a result, Ferrari had to replace several components, but a request for a penalty-free replacement of the Energy Store was denied by the stewards. They determined that the regulations did not allow for such action, despite the unusual circumstances. Sainz is now expected to be penalized for exceeding the power unit component allocation. Both drivers will still be able to participate in FP2 later due to a quirk in the regulations that allows for a change in the survival cell.
