Las Vegas Strip Circuit Explained

Las Vegas Strip Circuit
Location:Paradise, Nevada, United States
Time:UTC−08:00
Coordinates:36.11°N -115.1622°W
Capacity:100,000
Architect:Carsten Tilke[1]
Fiagrade:1 (Grand Prix)
Events:Current:
Formula One
Las Vegas Grand Prix
(2023–present)
Surface:Asphalt
Layout1:Grand Prix Circuit (2023–present)
Turns:17
Length Km:6.201
Length Mi:3.853
Record Time:1:35.490
Record Driver: Oscar Piastri
Record Car:McLaren MCL60
Record Year:2023
Record Class:F1

The Las Vegas Strip Circuit is a street circuit around parts of the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, immediately adjacent to Las Vegas, Nevada. It winds through the streets of the city and comprises the Las Vegas Strip, a section of Las Vegas Boulevard that is home to the city's major hotels and casinos. It incorporates some of the most notable landmarks of the city, including the Sphere, Caesars Palace, Bellagio, and Paris Las Vegas.

Designed by Carsten Tilke, the son of Formula One circuit designer Hermann Tilke,[2] [3] the circuit broke ground in March 2022 and opened on November 16, 2023, during the weekend of the first Las Vegas Grand Prix.

History

This circuit has been designed to incorporate part of Las Vegas Boulevard, widely known as the Las Vegas Strip. The cars pass several local landmarks that are illuminated at night. The city has given Formula One permission to use the roads required for the race for ten years. When the race was announced in March 2022, the track layout featured 14 corners. It was later revised with the addition of a chicane, bringing the number of corners to 17.[4]

Layout

The 3.853miles[5] street circuit runs counterclockwise and features 17 corners and a 1.2miles straight.[6] [7] It starts in a former parking lot which has been bought by Formula One for $240 million and developed into the pits and paddock area, and now contains permanent part of the circuit.[8] The first corner is a hairpin, and after that the course bends slightly left and then into a fast right, transitioning from the permanent circuit to city streets. The cars go 0.51NaN1 down Koval Lane before entering a slow 90-degree right turn and then entering a long, sweeping left turn which encircles the new Sphere arena, before going through a left–right twisty section (a change from the initial design)[9] and then a slightly faster-left turn which transitions onto Sands Avenue. The track then goes through two high-speed bends on Sands Avenue before entering a slow left turn onto Las Vegas Boulevard, otherwise known as the Las Vegas Strip.[10] The 1.2miles flat-out section with two straights and a slight sweeping left curve goes past some of Las Vegas's most famous hotels and casinos. The circuit then goes through a tight series of three slow corners onto Harmon Avenue, down a 0.51NaN1 straight before going through a fast left bend to complete the lap and transition back to the permanent part of the circuit after the pits.[11]

The maximum speed recorded in a Formula One car during the race was 350.5km/h, established at the end of the Las Vegas Strip.[12]

Alleged attempt to prevent circuit certification

On March 5, 2024, several months after the inaugural 2023 race at the track, the BBC reported that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem had allegedly tried to pressure race officials into not certifying the circuit in time for the race. This came the day after it was announced that Sulayem had also been placed under FIA investigation for allegedly persuading stewards to overturn a penalty given to Fernando Alonso at the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.[13] [14]

Events

The main event that is held at this circuit is the annual Las Vegas Grand Prix in Formula One.

Lap records

As of November 2023, the fastest official race lap record at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit is listed as:

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Las Vegas Strip Circuit. Racing Circuits Info. 17 November 2023.
  2. Web site: Tilke duo describe the challenges of Las Vegas Grand Prix circuit design. 8 November 2023. 18 November 2023.
  3. Web site: Wilde. Jon. 27 August 2021. Jeddah to be 'one of the world's best circuits'. live. 14 October 2021. PlanetF1. 29 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211029173611/https://www.planetf1.com/news/jeddah-street-worlds-best-circuits/.
  4. Web site: Wood . Keith Collantine, Will . 2022-09-02 . F1's Las Vegas track layout changed by addition of new chicane . 2023-11-17 . RaceFans . en-GB.
  5. Web site: 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix – Event Notes – Circuit Map V3 . 2023-11-17 . 2023-11-17 . Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile.
  6. Web site: F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix Track Facts . 29 November 2022 . December 3, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221203112409/https://www.f1lasvegasgp.com/track-layout . live.
  7. Web site: Las Vegas Strip Street Circuit – Racing Circuits . 29 November 2022 . November 27, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221127142526/https://www.racingcircuits.info/north-america/usa/las-vegas-strip-street-circuit.html . live .
  8. Web site: 2022-05-16 . Why F1 is spending $240m on a Las Vegas construction plot . 2023-11-10 . us.motorsport.com . en.
  9. Web site: F1's Las Vegas track layout changed by the addition of new chicane. RaceFans.net. 3 September 2022. 16 November 2023.
  10. Web site: Las Vegas Grand Prix: How a plan 40 years in the making finally came to fruition. 15 November 2023. BBC Sport. 15 November 2023.
  11. Web site: Las Vegas Grand Prix track layout: Check out the Las Vegas Grand Prix circuit's layout . March 31, 2022 . Formula1.com . June 14, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220614005132/https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.revealed-check-out-the-las-vegas-grand-prix-circuits-layout.1xBOUUuDJDtqX4ukNvnHcK.html . live.
  12. Web site: Formula 1 Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023 – Race Maximum Speeds . . 18 November 2023 . 18 November 2023.
  13. News: Benson . Andrew . Mohammed Ben Sulayem: FIA president allegedly told officials not to certify Las Vegas GP . 5 March 2024 . BBC Sport . 5 March 2024.
  14. News: King . Ryan Erik . FIA President Tried To Cancel F1's Las Vegas Race With Fixed Track Inspection: Whistleblower . 5 March 2024 . Jalopnik . 5 March 2024 . en.
  15. Web site: Las Vegas Strip Circuit . Formula1.com . 18 November 2023 . 18 November 2023.