F1 and Las Vegas: From parking failures, to the biggest bets

Ang Formula 1 at Las Vegas they will meet again. They say the second half has never been good, but in this case, the ‘Great Circus’ bet seems safer than one that can be made at one of the 1,700 gambling venues (according to 2015 data), 144 casinos (2021) or 178,000 slot machines scattered throughout the city. And it may well be better than the decisions that many people can make inside 500 churches What is in this metropolis? F1 is returning to the city of gambling and excess, hoping that the world’s top motorsport competition will become a real attraction for tourists, receiving more than 1,300 captivating slot machines at McCarran airport , and shared by any type of establishment, including funeral homes.

It is estimated that 87% of people who visit Las Vegas gambleinvesting (or disposing of) about 4 and a half hours in a 3 day casino stay, with an average spending of approximately $ 500 every person. If you add to these numbers the luxury and exclusivity of the people that is Formula 1, they must multiply. That’s what they expect in the State of Nevada, the people attracted to the races, to witness a unique urban appointment that could be like the new ‘United States Monaco GP ‘: luxury, parties of the most exclusive and elite people in the world and a lot of waste of money … money at the end of the shovel.

The previous circuit, in a car park

The same mindset in the 80s managed to bring F1 on Las Vegas for the first time. After the circuit Watkins Glen not comply with the payments of GP of the United States 1980, the owners of the most important casino then in the city, the Caesar’s PalaceThey found the perfect reason to achieve their goal. They hoped that F1 would attract people with money who were willing to spend it on their Poker and Blackjack tables and they were able to make their idea a reality: they would have their own Grand Prix in the years 1981 and 1982.

At the time, Las Vegas was far from what it is today and the track was not located on its main streets, but in the parking lot of said casino. Therefore, they had to make the most of the space, hence the the circuit will be ‘E’ shaped, with a pit lane only half a kilometer away and with garages located outside.

But that view of dollars and more dollars from traders has been a disappointment. The American public is not as attracted to F1 as it is today. The event did not cause the expected sensation and the stands were not filled. If there is no whole house, there is no money, nor are the expected bets. So, that experiment would only last two years.

Plus, F1 had another ‘handicap’ to succeed there: The heat of the Mojave desert. The temperature was very high then Nelson Picketafter pbecame F1 world champion at that stage in 1981, he stayed about 15 minutes inside the car to recoverwith symptoms of dehydration, needs to be taken out of the vehicle.

Now, the same parking lot where picket achieved his first crown and where rage He won Big prize After 1982, there were two skyscrapers with hotel rooms, a large courtyard with several swimming pools, a sports hall with a capacity for 12,000 people and usually hosting boxing nights, and a multi-level car parking. No trace of F1.

Second chance

The second chance Formula 1 provided in Las Vegas seemed better planned than the first. Unlike in the 80s, the United States is now experiencing a boom in this competition. All this, thanks to the huge success of Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’ series. This F1 series has made it possible for fans, especially the youngest, to name the drivers and have their preferences through a narrative that evokes rivalries, often forced and far from reality, and lots of emotions. .

This ‘boom’ is such that the success of 2021 United States GP in Austin it was unforgettable and the pilots were amazed at the heat of the public. Without walking yet, Carlos Sainz he was surprised at the hundred people waiting for him Leclerc and him every day at the hotel with a hat and t-shirt ferrari. “Crazy”, said his surroundings.

F1 has multiplied its global audience, with 1.55 billion worldwideand the F1 Abu Dhabi GP According to the competition, it was the second most -watched sporting event of the year behind the final of the European Football Championship, even though it surpassed Super bowl. Audience in the United States increased by 58%. And that context seems to be the perfect one to bring in Formula 1 to Vegasas the third Big prize sa United States of the full calendar along with Austin at Miami.

One in 1981, GP for F1 history

Although only two are disputed Grand Prix in Las Vegasin 1981 and 1982, this location had a place in Formula 1 history, as it was remembered for a rigorous, exciting and controversial World Cup final, which was crowned Nelson Picket in front of Charles Reutemann.

The Argentine, last died July 7, 2021was left with honey on his lips in the final racing course after a season full of controversy in Williams. The group of woods there was a clear number 1 in Alan Joneswas currently F1 world champion, but at the beginning of the course, in Brazilian GP, Reutemann he didn’t listen to repeated orders from the team to let Jones pass, even though the team showed up in four laps with a famous mark ‘Jones-Reut’. Subsequently, he had strange mechanical problems in Germany. And in the middle of the campaign, Williams made a mid-season tire change from Michelin to Goodyear that hurt the handling of ‘Lole’.

But the straw that broke behind the camel was Las Vegas, in the last race. playing title, Reutemann He competed on a chassis worse than Jones despite the fact that the Australian no longer had title options. Carlos hit the pole but he was surprised to see that on the day of the race they replaced his chassis, and on the same day they fitted a different brake.

“Why did we ride the chassis 17? Why do we need to set the brakes on race morning? I didn’t have a suitable set of tires … Everything was a disaster ”, said the man from Santa Fe then. Even MansellHe said, riding behind him, that the wheels were out of balance and the right rear wheel was detached a few centimeters from the asphalt at quick corners. Reutemann dropped the spot and finished eighth. Piquet regained positions up to fifth place which gave him the crown. From that race it is remembered that Santa Fe went straight to his hotel, destroyed, while his entire team celebrated Jones ’victory in that GP as if they had won the title.