The race had already attracted some controversy in the weeks leading up to this weekend when privacy filters were installed in areas of pedestrian bridges that crossed the Strip, preventing people without tickets from seeing the course.
When residents attempted to remove it, it was replaced in the appropriate locations and provided with cage-like structures that also covered the upper elements of the bridge to prevent objects from being thrown onto the tracks.
Shops along the Strip were also banned from selling glass items at certain times around F1 sessions to prevent dangerous items from entering the track.
As with many permanent Formula One circuits, privacy walls were installed on many of the fences that lined the edge of the circuit on the strip’s asphalt, which remained open to the public even during live sessions.
During the race in Las Vegas, as seen in the photos above and below, a few fans – some dressed in team gear but presumably without tickets – managed to successfully break through this gap to get a view of the track on the Strip beyond to throw.
Event staff attempted to replace the screens after they were damaged, but were unsuccessful.
The area of concern was opposite the Planet Hollywood Casino and Hotel, which is near Turn 14 – the main overtaking point – on the track.
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
Fans watch from behind a safety fence
With organizing bodies convened at this year’s races in Australia and Brazil to explain incidents involving spectators breaching security barriers to the respective stewards at these events, fan interaction with track infrastructure has been a focus for Formula 1 itself and the FIA .
But Motorsport.com understands no safety concerns were raised by race officials about fan behavior during the action-packed race, which was ultimately won by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
The fences in question were also located away from the barriers that lined the edge of the track on the other side of the strip, and therefore the fans and drivers gathered there would not have been exposed to danger – as was the case in Melbourne and Sao Paulo.
Saturday night’s fan action in Las Vegas followed a controversial first event in Sin City after the FP1 disaster, in which the concrete around a water valve cover on the Strip failed, severely damaging Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.
This led to long delays on the circuit’s opening day as the valve cover in question and 30 others along the strip were filled in to prevent them from moving as cars raced down the strip at top speed.
The work resulted in a 2.5-hour delay to the extended FP2 session, during which fans were removed from the venue after security shifts ended.
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
Fans watch from behind a safety fence
Fans who only had tickets to Thursday’s action received $200 in vouchers to redeem at the event’s online merchandise store after watching just eight minutes of live action at the track.
As a result, a prominent Nevada law firm took legal action against the Las Vegas GP organization to obtain refunds for affected spectators.
The F1 organization – which includes the organizer of the Las Vegas GP – has been contacted for comment on the removal of the screens.