For many years a haven for one-off sporting events like boxing and mixed martial arts, Las Vegas, Nev. has carved out a permanent piece of the pie in recent years: combined with the city’s penchant for high profile gambling, it’s the perfect place for sports and sports betting.
Sin City put itself on the professional sports map for good in 2017 when the Vegas Golden Knights had their debut season; the Oakland Raiders moved to Vegas three years later, and the Oakland A’s may be hot on their heels as talks for a new stadium stall out.
For the first time since 1982, Formula One will hold a Grand Prix World Championship event in Vegas: the previous iteration, the Caesars Palace Grand Prix, was canceled after just two years for a host of reasons. The course packed 2.268 miles of track into the rear parking lot of Caesars Palace, winding back and forth around hairpin turns that dizzied the drivers and limited their ability to reach top speeds. The inaugural event, held in late September, saw temperatures reach 98 degrees Fahrenheit that, when combined with the burning heat of a cockpit, caused world champion driver Nelson Piquet to vomit into his helmet during the race. In addition, the tight turns caused mechanical failures for the vehicles as drivers opened the throttle out of curves before immediately choking back for a 180 degree turn.
The Caesar’s Palace Grand Prix was the final race of the season in both years it was held, deciding who won the World Championship.
Can the Cold Streak Come to a Close?
Ford is always looking to get the top position for Best Engine Manufacturer, a position that has been disputed since they won this back to back titles in 1982 and 1983 at the Grand Prix in Detroit, MI and they are the favorites on Michigan sportsbooks. While the Motor City’s favored son sits third all time with 176 manufacturer wins, they have a two decade long cold streak, one of the longest in Formula 1: their last win was at the 2003 Brazilian Grand Prix in São Paulo.
The return to Las Vegas could be a shot in the arm for Ford, who was the winning manufacturer in both the 1981 and 1982 events.
Course Updates
The original course, mercifully, has been bulldozed into a shopping mall. John Watson, who came in seventh place while driving for McLaren in 1981, complained of how the claustrophobic course disoriented him.
“You had this totally flat ground and three foot high concrete barriers so you had very little sense of reference points. A driver needs reference points around the racetrack, like a building or a tree, to help you find the rhythm of the circuit,” Watson said. “It was probably the least appealing Grand Prix circuit I think I’ve raced on.”
Drivers won’t have a problem finding landmarks in 2023, as a 1.181 mile straight segment of the new course follows the iconic Las Vegas Strip.
The weather shouldn’t be an issue for the drivers this time around. The race will take place between Thursday, November 16 and Saturday, November 18. It’s going to be a night race, which will keep temperatures down and give drivers and spectators alike a chance to experience The Strip in all its neon glory.
The new course contains 17 turns, three more than the original, but they’re more spread out: at 3.803 miles, it’s more than a mile and a half longer.
It’s the penultimate race in the 2023 Formula 1 circuit, so it’ll have major implications ahead of the final weekend of the season in Abu Dhabi.
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