US F1 star reveals theory over Bahrain testing issues

Florida-born F1 driver Logan Sargeant revealed his theory over why testing in Bahrain was blighted by loose drain cover issues.

On both Thursday and Friday a drain cover at turn 11 came loose after a car ran over it, causing a session cancellation on Thursday and complete rejig of Friday's schedule following a red flag which caused a delay of over an hour.

Both instances both come after drain covers caused a major issue at the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix last year, one of the races on home turf for Sargeant.

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Sargeant: They just need to be secured better

The Williams driver, who is entering his second season in F1, spoke exclusively to GPFans USA about his belief that ground-effect era cars are putting more strain on drain covers.

The 23-year-old took time out from his busy testing schedule in Bahrain to discuss the recurring F1 issue.

"I'm sure those checks are made [on drain covers]," he said. "I'm sure they're unexpected when it [a drain cover breaking] happens.

"Look at the pre-season testing here in Bahrain – a track that normally has no issues at all and we've had two huge stoppages for drain covers. I think a lot of it is possibly down to the new era of cars having so much suction coming from the floor and they just need to be secured better.”

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