The Las Vegas Strip and surrounding roads will be transformed in to a flashy F1 street circuit for 2023.
The world’s fastest motorsport will hold a 50-lap race under Sin City’s neon lights on a Saturday night in November—a rarity in a schedule that typically runs grands prix on Sundays. CNET’s Roadshow reports that qualifying will still take place on that Friday, potentially the day after Thanksgiving.
Of the 31 layouts considered the FIA, the international governing body of motorsport settled on a circuit that stretches 3.8 miles from start to finish across three main straights and 14 corners, including a single chicane.
Race cars will be clocking speeds of up to 213 mph down The Strip’s famous landmarks like the Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Venetian and Wynn. The prospect excited many drivers in a reaction video:
“I think a few drivers might not wake up for the race itself,” added Red Bull’s reigning world champion Max Verstappen. “Let’s not do back-to-back [race weekends] for this one. Let’s give it two weeks’ break before and after.”
Seven-time champ Lewis Hamilton seemed worried about fulfilling Verstappen’s prophecy. “Knowing that it’s a real party city, it’s difficult for a racing driver…” the Mercedes AMG Petronas veteran trailed off. “How am I going to focus that weekend?”
Hamilton’s former teammate, Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas, recounted an experience many Vegas visitors can probably relate to.
“I’ve been once to Vegas. When I left, I said, ‘never again.’ But I’m coming back. Might need to try and behave better than I did last time.”
Las Vegas joins Austin and Miami as the third stop for F1 in the United States in 2023. The addition of an American grand prix makes sense, as Netflix’s Formula 1: Drive to Survive has helped F1 fandom reach a historic highs in the U.S.
