Las Vegas Grand Prix faces lawsuit after F1 track canceled
FILE – Normal view of the Sphere during qualifying for the F1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas. REUTERS/Mike Blake
LAS VEGAS – The troubled System One Grand Prix of Las Vegas has been the subject of a class-action lawsuit on behalf of the 35,000 people who purchased tickets for Thursday’s viewing session that was canceled when the Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari was broken by a loose drain cover.
The much-anticipated first action on the neon-lit circuit, which includes a section along the famous Las Vegas Strip, lasted just over eight minutes before stopping.
What followed was a five-and-a-half hour break while crews removed all 30 covers along the 3.8-mile format and filled the holes with sand and asphalt.
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A second 90-minute viewing session began in front of empty stands at 2:30 a.m. Friday morning, long after fans had been evacuated in a move officials said was a mandatory safety measure.
Las Vegas Grand Prix officials attempted to manage injuries, providing $200 merchandise vouchers to one-day ticket holders.
Compensation was not extended to those who purchased three-day passes.
The Dimopoulos Law Agency and co-counsel JK Authorized & Consulting said they filed a class action lawsuit against the System One Las Vegas Grand Prix (LVGP) in Nevada state court on Friday, on behalf of people who purchased tickets to watch the race.
A fan walks in front of a video board after the end of the first viewing session of the System One Las Vegas Grand Prix auto race, Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photography/Darron Cummings)
The lawsuit named System One racing owners and promoters Liberty Media Company, DBA System One Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix and TAB Contractors Inc as defendants.
“There are a lot of problems with this (compensation),” Steve Dimopoulos told Reuters in a telephone interview on Saturday. “Clearly, this ($200 merchandise voucher) should not be a sufficient refund.
“A lot of subscribers probably don’t even need that, they need a refund.
“There are also peripheral issues regarding those who came from out of town and paid for major plane tickets and hotels.”
The decision to send fans home was made out of concern for public safety officers who had been on duty for a very long time, LVGP CEO Renee Wilm and F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said in a joint statement.
Qualifying took place on Friday and was uneventful.
System One did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
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