Leclerc ‘really enjoyed’ first Las Vegas Grand Prix

LAS VEGAS — Charles Leclerc said the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix was exactly what Formula One needed from its glitzy new event after drawing criticism earlier in the week.

The new Vegas circuit delivered a candidate race of the season that saw Leclerc swap the lead with Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez.

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F1’s new $500 billion event got off to a rocky start this week when a loose drain cover destroyed the underside of Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari on Thursday, leading to the cancellation of early practice.

Second practice took place Friday morning at 2:30 a.m. after fans were asked to leave the circuit.

Fans with a ticket for Thursday received a $200 voucher for the race merchandise store in lieu of a refund.

“I really enjoyed it,” Leclerc said of the race. “I think we needed it. Of course the weekend didn’t start the way it should have started, but I’m so happy it ended the way it did. It’s such an incredible sport.

“I think today there was no better race than our first race in Vegas. The energy around the city is amazing and really happy, at least I enjoyed it today.”

Leclerc had taken pole position for the event but was forced wide at Turn 1 by eventual winner Verstappen.

On the radio during the race, Leclerc had made it clear that he felt Verstappen should have been immediately forced to surrender the position.

Verstappen was ultimately handed a five-second penalty, which he served during his first pit stop, but that didn’t stop him from winning the race.

Leclerc managed to pull off the race move to reclaim second position, passing Perez on the penultimate corner of the final lap.

“I’m of course disappointed to only finish second, but in the end it was the best we could do,” added Leclerc.

“At the beginning it was very tricky because I think Max on the inside lost a little bit of grip and took me to the outside. But then we had the pace, we overtook him and we We were really strong overall.

“We had a bit of bad luck with the safety car. We didn’t go to the pits because we didn’t know what the others were going to do. We opted for track position and kept that first place.

“It was difficult with the older tires towards the end. But second place with a lot of fighting, honestly I enjoyed it.”