A class action lawsuit stemming from an on-track incident during the inaugural Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix in 2023 has been dismissed in part.
But in throwing out much of the complaint filed in 2023 by a group of race ticket holders, U.S. District Judge Gloria Navarro gave the plaintiffs an opportunity to amend their suit.
The race fans filed suit seeking $5 billion against F1’s parent company Liberty Media and Las Vegas Paving. The judge ruled that the plaintiffs “sufficiently plead that they have a cognizable injury but fail to sufficiently plead” breach of contract, along with negligence and deceptive trade practice claims.
The court gave the plaintiffs 21 days from the Feb. 19 ruling to amend their complaint against Liberty Media tied to the breach of contract claim. The judge dismissed Las Vegas Paving from the case.
The suit was filed in response to a water valve coming loose on the track during the first practice session of the 2023 grand prix, which damaged multiple race car drivers’ vehicles, causing a 2½-hour delay before practice resumed.
The suit stated that the 35,000 fans who purchased tickets for that night’s practice rounds were forced to leave an hour before the delayed second practice session began.
The plaintiffs in the case were race ticket holders James Dayap, Matt Raddue, Carlos Mauricio Gil and Jory Levy of Clark County and Jack Diep from Mohave County, Arizona. Raddue and Mauricio Gil voluntarily dismissed themselves from the case in May 2024.
The plaintiffs filed suit to be reimbursed for tickets, travel, meals lodging and other expenses related to attending the 2023 race.
Following the incident, F1 issued some of the affected fans a $200 credit to their online merchandise store.
Representatives with the Las Vegas Grand Prix declined to comment on the court ruling.
Multiple law firms representing the plaintiffs could not be reached for comment on whether they planned to file an amended complaint within the three-week window.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.
