Max Verstappen has won the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix and his 18th race of the season.
His victory came after McLaren‘s Lando Norris crashed his way out of the event just four laps into the race, with the 24-year old sent to hospital to be checked over.
Norris looked to have a lock up and lost control of his steering in turn 11, forcing him to overcorrect, before he lost control of the back end of the car and became a passenger in his own vehicle.
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He hit the side wall and steered himself into the run-off area at turn 12.
A suspension failure or puncture may be the culprit for the crash, but it is yet to be confirmed by McLaren.
CEO of McLaren, Zak Brown spoke immediately after the accident, confirming the 24-year-old was okay.
“He’s okay, it’s a very big hit,” Brown told Sky Sport.
“He sounded very winded when he spoke to us. We’re looking at what happened.
“Just very happy he’s okay. It was a bit concerning when we first spoke to him.”
“He’s in the medical centre now, being checked out.”
Over the team radio, Norris could be heard confirming he was okay, through laboured breaths and grunts.
“Lando, are you okay?” The team asked, before a long pause.
“Yeah, all good,” Norris said.
Meantime, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton has reported an early puncture, which has forced him to pit earlier than expected.
Oscar Piastri also got a puncture from the wheel touch with Hamilton.
“We were not too caught out given where he was,” Brown said of Paistri’s forced pit stop.
Norris stands in fifth, three points behind Fernando Alonso, but won’t take any points from the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix.
It is Norris’ first retirement since Brazil 2022.