The Ferrari Challenge has been added to the schedule for this year’s Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, while an ice rink will also be installed on top of the Paddock Club.
There were no support races for the 2023 race when F1 returned to Sin City for the first time in 41 years, as issues with a drain cover caused damage to Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, leading to huge delays to Friday practice.
“We know what we have to do before the grand prix this year,” said Chief Commercial Officer for F1 and Las Vegas Grand Prix, Inc, Emily Prazer – who confirmed it will also be helpful to have other cars on the circuit before the F1 sessions begin.
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“We’re adding Ferrari Challenge. So that will be coming, we’re super excited about it. We took on the feedback last year of not having a support race. Logistics last year were our number one concern, which again I think everyone understood.
“So now we feel much more comfortable being able to extend the operating hours and the track activity. It was just a year-one confidence thing honestly, and now we’re feeling pretty good about it.
“Ferrari also brings a crowd that loves Las Vegas as you’d expect. So it’s a natural one for us to go after, and they’ve been incredible partners.”
As well as adding the Ferrari Challenge to the on-track roster, Prazer revealed that the F1 Academy will be showcased during the race weekend with the hope that the female-only series could one day also form part of the support races in Vegas.
Free tickets for an F1 Festival to run on Friday and Saturday have all been snapped up at 30,000 per day, as the championship aims to follow in the footsteps of the Super Bowl that was staged in Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium in February.
“Tickets are taken, it’s a capacity of 30,000 per day. Vegas is notorious that during major events, people flood there anyway. If you speak to anyone from Vegas, the casinos as well, it’s great that the Super Bowl was there, but they’re that busy during the Super Bowl anyway, so we wanted to take the spirit of that and have the city be as busy as possible if people aren’t necessarily coming to the grand prix,” explained Prazer.
A view of the paddock
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
“Which is why the LVCVA (Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority) have also put on a festival…
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