F1 News: Fernando Alonso Highlights Major Las Vegas GP Fault

Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso is of the opinion that the current version of the Formula 1 car is not made for low-speed corners like the ones in Las Vegas, which arrive after the cars do excess of 350 kph on long straights.

The Spanish driver explained that the street circuit was "not much fun" with that sort of a layout, especially when you take into account the low temperatures and low grip levels that proved to be a major challenge during the inaugural Grand Prix weekend.

Listen To The Latest Driven Mad Podcast Episode

Alonso added that modern F1 cars are best suited to long sweeping bends of classic Formula 1 circuits that continue to remain a part of the sport's calendar even today, rather than the abrupt stops in Las Vegas that spoil the fun.

The 42-year-old driver made this remark despite the street circuit in Las Vegas surpassing the top speeds of tracks like Monza and the average speeds of Spa-Francorchamps throughout a single lap.

Alonso stressed the need to preserve traditional races in Formula 1, where the modern "F1 car can shine." Speaking to the media and Total Motorsport, he explained:

“We need balance, as we said this week.

“There is not much fun to drive this kind of circuit at speeds of 360 kilometres an hour with no grip, no visibility, bouncing and those kinds of things.

“I know the show from the outside maybe looks good, but these cars are not made to go through corners at 80kph.

“These cars are made to go in Suzuka, to go in Barcelona, to go and Silverstone and maximise F1 potential.

“I think we need to balance the championship and balance the calendar. I think it’s what we are doing, but I don’t think that this is the only way to go.

“I think we need to have to keep some traditional races as well, where the F1 car can shine.”

Despite being involved in an incident at the start of the Las Vegas GP, a Safety Car helped Alonso catch up with the pack again and secure P9. He continued:

“I lost the car. I don’t know if I was in a sandwich between two cars or if I was alone, I don’t know yet.

“I thought it was over when I saw the Alfa Romeo and I was facing the wrong way, so I’m happy with the final result and scoring some points.

“The only thing is the level of grip as we touched on yesterday. I think it’s extremely low. I know it’s the same for everybody, but on a street circuit sometimes there is a danger factor that we need to weigh as well, I think Lando crashed quite hard into Turn 12.

“The level of grip and the temperature put the tyres under a lot of stress, a lot of graining.

“Maybe we can improve things into next year because we will learn from this season, but I think the race was good.”