Will the Las Vegas Grand Prix Live Up to the Hype?

F1 will be heading to Las Vegas later this year and the sport’s owners are putting a lot of effort into hyping up the event. But will this Grand Prix along the famous strip live up to the hype? 

Part of a Wider Strategy

Many new people have fallen in love with Formula 1 in the last few years as the sport has embarked on a campaign to woo new demographics. As we know, these efforts have been a huge success, as reflected in the growing TV viewing figures and rising stock price for Liberty Media, F1’s parent company. 

This strategy of expansion has been multifaceted, consisting of several key elements. The first has been to embrace social media far more than in the past, both from directly-controlled accounts and those of drivers, teams and broadcasters. The second has been to use the Drive to Survive Netflix series to show the personal sides of the drivers and team officials, and to dramatise the tensions between them. 

With these two elements in place to capture more fans, the next steps have been to make the sport easier to understand and more interactive. This has been done by harnessing more of the data that is generated on track to create additional on-screen graphics to provide context to how the race is evolving. 

The data is also used to allow sportsbooks to offer a more diverse set of Formula 1 betting markets, including more live in-race wagers such as whether there will be a safety car and which team will have the fastest pit stop. To coincide with this, many bookies have been offering large free bet offers to try and capture more of a market share. So much so, in fact, that sites like OddsChecker have become hugely popular among fans trying to find the best deals. 

Following the success of these steps, the next part of the strategy was to increase the number of key markets where Grands Prix are held. The most notable of these has been the United States where, after the sport found a home in Austin, Texas, the F1 circuit has begun pitching up in Miami. 

After creating an interest in what it has to offer through the other parts of the strategy, Las Vegas is just the next step in the sport’s plans to grow the size of its fanbase in the USA. 

A Neon Tilke Drome?

F1’s street races have, for the most part, become known for processions rather than wheel-to-wheel combat. This isn’t only true about the tight and twisty Monaco Grand Prix, but also the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia, the Valencia Street Circuit in Spain, and even the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore. 

While the German architect is not entirely to blame, Hermann Tilke’s name has become synonymous with the designs of these tracks that can hinder overtaking, and his name is also attached to the track in Las Vegas. 

However, Tilke has actually designed many great tracks over the years. The Las Vegas circuit is set to combine some of the best elements to promote overtaking, including a switchback start section, consecutive DRS zones, and curved straights. 

Best to Temper Expectations

Rather than charging someone else a fee for the right to host a race, Formula 1 is investing some of its own money in the Las Vegas Grand Prix, because it’s a critical part of the sport’s long-term expansion strategy. Therefore, it needs to see a good return on investment. 

This will mean we can expect the hype train to be at full speed as we hurtle down the track towards the Grand Prix weekend in mid-November. However, if the Miami Grand Prix is anything to go by, we can expect it to be a little anti-climactic. 

Of course, a night race on a Saturday night that sees cars hurtle past some of the most spectacular buildings on the planet will be a great sight but, if you’re an F1 fan who loves racing, it may be best to temper your anticipation.