The Las Vegas Grand Prix is just days away and many are anticipating a race unlike anything else on this year’s F1 calendar. The weekend event is a unique point of 2023 with the event taking place between Thursday and Saturday instead of the usual Friday to Sunday format.
Drivers will be taking to the street circuit late into the night so that the true bright lights of the city can be enjoyed by spectators. The street race will test drivers and their teams with unusually cold conditions expected to impact the cars.
In previous years, races on the iconic strip had resulted in drivers complaining about the high temperatures. The last time Formula 1 took to the streets of Vegas was in 1982, but the Caesars Palace Grand Prix was heavily criticised for the flat track and higher temperatures which reached highs of 37.1ºC (99.8 Fahrenheit.)
The race took place at the end of September and the heat combined with the track conditions from the abrasive asphalt of the hotel car park, meant that the drivers were struggling to get grip from their tyres. The heat also affected the drivers with many suffering from neck pain and extreme exhaustion at the end of the 75-lap race.
Brabham's Nelson Piquet vomited in his helmet during the grand prix and had to be lifted out of his car following the chequered flag.
Ross Brawn, a former Formula One managing director, has admitted that the series had not considered the low temperatures in Las Vegas when assigning the track a spot on the calendar. Many are concerned about how the lower temperatures will impact the car’s performance and safety on the track.
Source: Autosport