Carlos Sainz says his “number one hope” this weekend is to avoid a loose drain cover after that sent him out of free practice in the inaugural Las Vegas GP. Sainz’s Ferrari went over a loose drain on the circuit last year and produced a highly controversial moment in what was the first appearance of the Nevada race on the F1 calendar.

T he main storyline when the grid arrived in Sin City for the Las Vegas Grand Prix was the battle for the Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship. With Max Verstappen on the cusp of cli