Despite getting off to a shaky start, the inaugural Las Vegas GP absolutely delivered when it came to quality racing. Following the intense 50 laps of racing, Lewis Hamilton opened up about his feelings regarding the track and also took a subtle dig at Max Verstappen for his negative comments regarding the race.
Talking to the media after the race, Hamilton explained how the Las Vegas GP track proved all the doubters wrong. He said, “All of those that were so negative about the weekend, saying this is all about show bla bla bla. I think Vegas proved them wrong.”
#LasVegasGP 🇺🇸 | Lewis Hamilton post-race: “I wasn’t really expecting the track to be so great. Lots of great overtaking opportunities.”
“All of those that were so negative about the weekend, saying this is all about show bla bla bla. I think Vegas proved them wrong.”
— deni (@fiagirly) November 19, 2023
It was a clear dig at Verstappen’s comments from Thursday when he had claimed that Las Vegas is 99% about the show and only 1% about actual racing. Following the Free Practice 2 session, he also claimed that there are much better tracks around the world than the Las Vegas circuit.
However, come race day, the Las Vegas GP put up a brilliant spectacle. There was amazing racing action up and down the field. Right from a turn 1 crash on lap 1 to three drivers fighting for the win of the race. While Max Verstappen won the race as usual, the cherry on top was the last-lap overtake Charles Leclerc made to grab P2 from Sergio Perez.
Following his win, Verstappen himself seemed to have changed his mind about the Las Vegas GP. After winning the race, the once critical Red Bull driver sang Viva Las Vegas over the radio with his team soaking in the moment.
Las Vegas GP turns out to be a spectacular race
Ahead of the race, the expectation was also that temperatures would be extremely low in Las Vegas. This would have made it even more difficult for the drivers to warm up the tires, leading to a lack of grip. It was speculated that this would cause boring racing as drivers would be racing carefully to avoid mistakes.
Me during the Vegas GP realizing the racing action was actually really good pic.twitter.com/2ubCxnB7J3
— Matt³³⁺¹⁶ (@FM1_3316) November 19, 2023
When the race kicked off, there was indeed a lack of grip as a result of which Verstappen and Leclerc went off the track in turn 1. However, things improved and instead of ruining the race, the low grip added a new sense of challenge, making the race even more exciting to watch.
With Leclerc, Perez and Verstappen fighting for the win, the Las Vegas GP was definitely one of the better races of the season. Even though Verstappen still managed to win, he probably had to work the hardest in Las Vegas to claim that victory.
