Grand Prix 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix Practice, Qualifying & Race Discussion

Howdy y'all, the next race will be in the entertainment capital of the world, sin city, city that never sleeps, brightest city in the world. Las Vegas Nevada

this is a realisation of the sports nearly 50 yr dream to get F1 on the Las Vegas strip, as those who followed the sport for a while will know that this isnt the 1st time we have been in Las Vegas as we had finales to the 1981 & 1982 that are remembered for all the wrong reasons. the ignominious Caesars Palace GP with the racetrack in the car park of the hotel. so bad it pops up in every list of the worst 5 circuits for F1 to race on. although whether this is a 1 off or fulfils its 10 yr contract remains to be scene because from the bits ive seen the locals aren't happen with the infrastructure needed for the race to take place

i think we are all concerned that this race will become where the on track become hugely overshadowed by what happens off track, especially with an opening ceremony, taking place on Wednesday evening, also this will be the first world championship race to be held on a Saturday for 38 years, since the 1985 South African GP at Kyalami. & alot has been made of racing on a Saturday although due to time differences unless your watching on the West coast & central America or Mexico. its business as usual & the race in the uk is no different to the Japanese gp starting at 6am on a sunday. although like buses you wait 38 years for a saturday race & 3 of the next 4 come along

i think the times are a bit weird not sure why Qualifying starting at the ridiculous local time of midnight, doesnt help the reputation that F1 is there for the fans, as i cant imagine going to a sporting event that finishes at after 1.30am. i think im right that the qualifying & the race will take place on the same day for the 1st time since japan 2005

i like the track on paper ive driven it quite a few times on the F1 2023 game. its fast its flowing, yes its going to pass all the major Landmarks, but its also got a huge back straight potentially the 2nd biggest F1 has seen 1.9km then a chicane followed by 800m straight to the 1st corner, but so many circuits look good on paper & fail in reality. it even has a nod to the Caesars palace circuit i mentioned earlier. the track conditions are appartantly a big worry to all the teams because it weird turn of events in 6 weeks we could have 1 of the hottest F1 races in Qatar & now in Las Vegas they are concerned it could be coldest race since Canada in 1978. where they are expecting temperatures of 6c, which teams thing will make tyre warm up a nightmare & have issues with cold graining

im looking forward to see Verstappen delaying the podium to stick his puffer coat on, if its anything like the 1978 Canadian GP podium

i guess the only way to end this is VIVA LAS VEGAS & what stays Vegas wont be staying in Vegas

 

[cider_and_toast]

Exactly.

It explains why we had "And Verstappen, running down the Las Vegas Strip, in Las Vegas, is gaining on Perez who has done well on this new Las Vegas circuit, a circuit which we'll be coming to for at least another 10 years. Now over to Karun in the Las Vegas Sky Race Control where he'll give us an update about the other cars in the Las Vegas GP, Karun, tell us about the Las Vegas GP..... "

 

[F1Brits_90]

That shite is on the calendar for another 10 years. Oh the joy

its was better than last time Mexico, Brazil & will highly likely be better than next week in Abu Dhabi. for me my in would be in my top 3 races of the season. Singapore, Qatar & Vegas

 

[Chris Tea]

I don’t get street circuits in F1… you go to somewhere that is instantly recognisable, and then run a race at a circuit lined with concrete barriers, to the extent that the race could be anywhere in the world.

Baku has character, but frankly, the Las Vegas race could have been mistaken for Jakku, Singapore,or others…. If you’re going to have a destination GP, run it during the day, so the destination makes sense! Could you imagine running Monaco in the dark?

They could not get permission to close The Strip during the day as it would create too much chaos in traffic. They were only allowed to do that at night...

 

[cider_and_toast]

for me my in would be in my top 3 races of the season. Singapore, Qatar & Vegas

That's setting the bar so low an ant couldn't limbo under it.

 

[Hamberg]

I thought it was a pile of crap. Isn’t DRS supposed to be drag reduction? Not provide a ****ing bastard boost whilst in the slipstream system (FBBWITSS clearly not as catchy).
Can we get rid of DRS now please? And they can take Vegas, Perez, Horner, Liberty and Sergeant whilst they’re at it.

 

[cider_and_toast]

It's called the Drag Reduction System because the "We're Incapable Of Overtaking Without It System" would devalue a sport that is supposed to be the pinnacle of motor racing.

 

[P1]

It was a good track. Too bad the sport is still rigged for Red Bull and Verstappen.

It would be nice if there was a racing series on similar tracks which was not rigged.

 

[Johnny Carwash]

thought it was a pile of crap. Isn’t DRS supposed to be drag reduction? Not provide a ****ing bastard boost whilst in the slipstream system

It should have been axed last year, when the new regulations meant cars could follow each other more easily.

 

[Dartman]

They can and it's now redundant, time to use driver skill again

 

[Johnny Carwash]

for me my in would be in my top 3 races of the season. Singapore, Qatar & Vegas

If that’s a top three, then F1 is in terminal decline.

 

[Brogan]

He's exactly the audience current F1 is targeting.

 

[F1Brits_90]

If that’s a top three, then F1 is in terminal decline.

i dont deny that this has been the worst season since 2004. & things will change because liberty will do to red bull & verstappen what bernie did to ferrari & schumacher

Baku, Spain, Mexico, Miami, Brazil, 2nd half of spa, abu dhabi were dreadful & ive never been so angry after a race like i was hungary. but there have been decent races probably just 4 of them. Zandvoort was a great wet race, Qatar was them pushing 100%, Vegas i really liked, there was always something happening & some decent overtakes. singapore was the best end to a race ive seen since canada 2012

 

[FB]

In my house that was, without doubt, THE most exciting race of the season. About 2 laps in one of my cats bought in a field mouse and it wasn't until the second safety period that we managed to catch the little beggar, having had both the cats and the dog chase it around the TV, behind the HIFI, behind the fish tank, and under the sofa.

The Grand Prix was on in the background.

 

[Wombat]

If finishing 2nd in the WDC means that RB will be retaining Checo for next season then the most disappointing aspect of this race was his securing of 2nd place in the championship. I like Checo. In fact, he’s one of my favorites among the current group of drivers. However, if he partners Max again next season we’ll most likely be in for yet another incredibly boring, sure thing, no competition WDC which will be decided with 6 or so races still remaining. This year’s RB is the most dominant car ever in F1 and there are no realistic signs that it won’t be just as dominant in 2024. In the hands of a good driver that car could easily win even if it had to start from pit lane. That’s why Max isn’t ever concerned about having to take a grid penalty. Because the car was so dominant, this was the easiest walk to a title that any driver has ever had. With such overwhelming dominance, the only chance for a title battle would be among teammates. Unfortunately, Checo just isn’t up to the task of even a modest title challenge and isn’t even capable of pushing Max. Though talented, he’s simply not a WDC caliber driver. He’s in that class of drivers who, given the right car and circumstances, are capable of nabbing an occasional win but lack the consistently high level required to win a title. Qualifying (even in such a dominant car) continued to be one of his main weaknesses and he generally seemed unable to come to terms with the car and unlock its full potential (was it perhaps badly unsuited to his driving style?).

As has been shown in the past, even a season with a dominant car can produce an interesting and entertaining title battle if the team contains two top drivers. In fact, the season which contained what was probably the second most dominant car ever (the 1988 McLaren-Honda) was one of the most intriguing and entertaining title battles ever. This was because the team contained the two top drivers at that time (and two of the greatest ever)--Senna and Prost--and it was such a rare treat to see such elite drivers battling each other on equal terms in the same car. I don’t imagine RB would ever take one of the two other current elite drivers (Lewis and FA) to partner Max but it would be nice for us fans if they would at least take one of the other WDC caliber drivers (such as Russel, CL or Norris, though I think all are under contract for 2024). It appears that they would be capable of pushing Max and at least keep it from being such a cake walk to the title. Unfortunately, it appears that RB is fine with the status quo and (with such a dominant car) isn’t interested in taking on a driver who might compete with Max (and no, DR isn’t the answer here). Dare we hope for a miraculous improvement from Merc, Ferrari or McLaren?

 

[Wombat]

its was better than last time Mexico, Brazil & will highly likely be better than next week in Abu Dhabi.

And a thousand times better than Monaco!

 

[Chris Tea]

I don’t imagine RB would ever take one of the two other current elite drivers (Lewis and FA) to partner Max but it would be nice for us fans if they would at least take one of the other WDC caliber drivers (such as Russel, CL or Norris, though I think all are under contract for 2024).

RB is built to suit Max and I'm not sure Lewis or Fernando would be able to adapt to it. It's so on the edge... That is one of the main reasons no other driver is able to deliver in that car.

 

[The Artist.....]

Being able to commit in a car that is constantly on edge is a sign of a great driver. i suspect that Hamilton would thrive in a car like that (much like the 2012 McLaren). In the same way, in 1992, Mansell was leaps and bounds ahead of Patrese, simply because he could commit to the corners in a way that Patrese couldn’t. Mansell thrived, and scored double Patrese’s points.

 

[TR]

the man that said its 99% entertainment 1% sport. singing viva las vegas down the strip

https://twitter.com/x/status/1726142875551859062

I suspect someone told him exactly who runs Las Vegas…

 

[TR]

If finishing 2nd in the WDC means that RB will be retaining Checo for next season then the most disappointing aspect of this race was his securing of 2nd place in the championship. I like Checo. In fact, he’s one of my favorites among the current group of drivers. However, if he partners Max again next season we’ll most likely be in for yet another incredibly boring, sure thing, no competition WDC which will be decided with 6 or so races still remaining. This year’s RB is the most dominant car ever in F1 and there are no realistic signs that it won’t be just as dominant in 2024.[…]

While this year’s Red Bull is a strong car, it is not nearly is dominant as the 2014-2016 Mercedes cars (or the 2002 Ferrari). The only aspect in which it might be considered to be ahead of those cars is that seemingly has less bogey tracks where it simply doesn’t work.

I completely agree though that in 2014-2016 at least there was some ongoing battle between the Mercedes team mates, providing at least some entertainment.

 

[P1]

While this year’s Red Bull is a strong car, it is not nearly is dominant as the 2014-2016 Mercedes cars (or the 2002 Ferrari). The only aspect in which it might be considered to be ahead of those cars is that seemingly has less bogey tracks where it simply doesn’t work.

I completely agree though that in 2014-2016 at least there was some ongoing battle between the Mercedes team mates, providing at least some entertainment.

I would argue those were some of the best seasons because you had two excellent drivers competing in the same car which made for real racing.