Image of Las Vegas, which will host an F1 race starting next year. /
world
The United States will host three races next year, since one will be held in Miami in May and another in Austin in October, a month before the test announced this Thursday
Formula 1 will light up the Las Vegas night sky on a Saturday in November 2023, when the fastest cars and the most famous drivers in the world take to the streets of ‘Sin City’. On the 6.12 kilometer track of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, single-seaters will roar past iconic venues such as the Fountains of Bellagio and Caesars Palace, in an event expected to attract 170,000 fans.
“We are doing something spectacular,” Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali told Reuters as he looked out over the Las Vegas Strip, which was lit up with advertisements for the event after it was announced. “It’s the perfect marriage. We are in an iconic city. We’re going to have the right atmosphere, the right intensity, the right passion. We already feel at home here,” he said.
Formula 1 races are usually held on Sundays and Saturday night’s race shows that the sport is “not static” and can adapt to its environment, he said. The city will also have to adjust to the battle, which Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak says will have a $1 billion impact on the local economy.
“I predict this will become the iconic race, the flagship race in F1 in a couple of years,” Sisolak said. “That’s how well it will be received,” he added.
The pilots are eager to participate in the race, for which an exact date has not been given. “I can’t believe it,” said AlphaTauri pilot Pierre Gasly, in a video showing his reaction to the news. Are we going to take that main road? No! That’s going to be crazy,” he launched.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said the driver who can resist the city’s many temptations will have the upper hand. “Knowing that it is a true party city, it is difficult. How are you going to concentrate that weekend? A lot of things are going to be happening », he ventured.
drive to survive
Previously, Formula 1 struggled to break into the United States, particularly after an infamous six-seater race at Indianapolis in 2005 did major damage to its reputation.
But its popularity has been on the rise and the country will host the Miami Grand Prix in May and the United States Grand Prix in Austin in October. “If you think about where we were in the United States just a couple of years ago, it was hard to have a crowded race,” Domenicali said. “Now we are complete,” he added.
Domenicali said the Netflix documentary series “Drive to Survive” has also sparked interest. He hopes there will be a fifth season despite criticism from some drivers, including world champion Max Verstappen, whose stories are doctored.
Next year’s race marks the return of Formula 1 to Las Vegas, which was the site of the Ceasars Palace Grand Prix in the early 1980s. Greg Maffei, CEO of Formula 1 owners Liberty Media , told Reuters the race would boost the spirits and pockets of city residents after Covid-19 took a heavy toll.
“Las Vegas, like many places, suffered during the pandemic. And Formula 1 suffered during covid. But the opportunity to grow together, the opportunity to speed up economic development, will be a great boost for the local population”, he commented.
