🏁 Vegas, Baby

PLP Season 1 Edition 8

IT’S FINALLY HERE. We’re pretty jazzed up to see these engineering marvels rip down the strip at 200mph+ to be honest. Anyone else on the east coast going to be watching live at the ripe hour of 1am EST? The start time was quite baffling until we realized that, while F1 growth has been huge in the U.S., we still have to appeal to our friends across the pond. It’ll be a bright and early 6am start for the Brits. But since it’s Vegas with all the hype and build up, the 1am race plays right into the atmosphere. We are going to be WIRED at lights out (We’ll just put the Sunday consequences aside for now). Here’s the start times in EST for the Duel in the Desert ™:

• Practice 1: Thursday, Nov 16, 11:30pm - 12:30am

• Practice 2: Friday, Nov 17 3:00am - 4:00am

• Practice 3: Friday, Nov 17 11:30pm - 12:30am

• Qualifying: Saturday, Nov 18 3:00am - 4:00am

• Race: Sunday, Nov 19 1:00am

***We did not actually trademark Duel in the Desert. Feel free to steal this and profit off of it.

Quick Quiz: While this weekend is the first Las Vegas Grand Prix, F1 has raced in Sin City before as the Caesars Palace Grand Prix. When was the last one held?

A. 1956 B. 1974 C. 1982 D. 1993

Find out below ⬇

Las Vegas GP Preview

We all know Vegas is going to be flashy (I mean, just take a look at Wednesday’s opening ceremony), but what about the actual racing? For the circuit, that’s the famous Las Vegas Strip at the bottom:

The track layout is certainly an interesting one. Only Austria’s Red Bull Ring and Monza have fewer turns, while Zandvoort, Hungaroring, and Montreal have the same number. There are three looooong straights, a high speed cornering section, and mostly slow turns - which means this circuit should be fast. Up to around 212mph fast, with plenty of opportunities for overtaking. Expect teams will bring low downforce packages with a shallow rear wing.

Also, we’ll be keeping close eyes on the weather. It’s going to be the coldest race of the year (and maybe the coldest race ever) which means getting tires in the right temperature window will be a challenge in low grip conditions. Besides the hype around the location, this race could be unpredictable and will certainly create some strategy challenges for race engineers. As long as safety is not compromised - that definitely doesn’t seem like a bad thing from a race excitement standpoint. By the time you read this, we’ll have FP1&2 under our belt and will know a little more about how the cars will respond on the track.

• Can the Las Vegas GP really live up to the hype?

• The circuit by the numbers

• How conditions will test the engineers

• 5 storylines to watch

Hype is Higher Than Ticket Sales?

While hype may be up, ticket prices are down and it seems like demand for the biggest spectacle of the year was overestimated. This is relative of course, with this race still making the biggest dent in fans’ wallets. Hotel prices have come down in turn. Initially, the GP wanted to charge any hotel that had a view of the circuit and threatened to obstruct that view if they did not pay up - however they’ve since backed off of that stance.

• Prices plummeting (to $800 for a ticket to the race only at time of writing, just to keep things in perspective…)

• F1 gambles on Las Vegas to break US market

• Ticket price animation for all races this year - with Vegas still being far and away #1.

A Logistical Challenge

At over half a billion spent by Liberty Media to get Vegas ready for F1, shelling out the cash was the easy part. Prepping for this weekend was a logistical problem that would challenge Imhotep himself (I asked ChatGPT who the best builder of all time was, so there ya go). A brand new paddock building, a complete resurfacing for the track (including the Strip of course), and navigating the disruption for locals must have made this a year long stress fest for some poor PM. While the quality of racing remains to be seen, one thing is certain - This race will sure look stunning.

• “We’re creating a new legacy”

• Circuit has transformed the strip

• F1 apologizes to LV for difficulties in bringing “long-term investment” to city

• Pit lane pulse placement may pose a challenge for drivers exiting on cold tires

Down the Grid

Tech Talk

• How do teams prepare for a new race like Vegas?

• Something crazy we heard on @effwonwithdrs podcast this last week: In preparation for a new race, teams will contact the contractors that laid down the surface to understand the track’s material structure. They’ll then use the same recipe and run actual tires against it to get expected tire wear data for their simulations. We new this sport was about attention to detail, but wow.. this is next level.

• More design genius from the RB19 [F1 Unlocked Only]

• GM registers as power unit manufacturer for 2028

• A higher mandated tire pressure will be used in attempt to help heat tires on the frigid desert track

Off the Grid

• If you’ve never seen how F1 drivers sit in their cars, it seems like it would take some getting used to

• If you watch one thing to get you hyped, let it be Guenther modeling this shiny jacket

• 5 teams have revealed their liveries at time of writing for this weekend.. Who did it best? For us it’s RBR for hitting the theme, but that classic look from the Scuderia sure is pretty:

Place your bets and enjoy the spectacle.. We’ll be back to recap all the action next Friday. And clearly, we’re not the only ones who thought the circuit layout this year was unique:

Questions? Comments? Did we get something wrong (never 😁)? Let us know ▶ [email protected]