The area of a circuit in motorsports where all teams have their temporary bases set up during a race weekend is referred to as a ‘paddock’. That term, however, won’t be used anywhere in Las Vegas this coming weekend, because it has been renamed to ‘Grand Prix Plaza’ because of a dark history associated with this familiar word.
The Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, one of the most iconic locations in the US, has a tragic past. Stephen Paddock, the criminal responsible for the country’s deadliest mass shootings, shook the lives of those in the city seven years ago, which is F1 made this alteration ahead of the 2024 Las Vegas GP.
“Why have they renamed it? Well, back in 2017, Stephen Paddock killed a whole host of people from one of the hotel rooms, and as such the locals won’t refer to this as the paddock,” F1 journalist Kym Illman said on his YouTube channel.
Residents do not need a reminder of just how heinous the crimes were, but F1 fans who were unfamiliar with the incident should now know that mentioning ‘paddock’ in the strip could lead to grim reactions. F1 wanted to avoid that, which is why ‘plaza’ was chosen as the alternative’.
Stephen Craig Paddock was a real-estate investor, property manager, and gambler who lived in Mesquite, Nevada. On October 1, 2017, he carried out a mass shooting from his 32nd-floor suite at the Mandalay Bay Hotel on the Strip.
Compiled surveillance footage shows Stephen Paddock’s movements in the days leading up to the horrendous 2017 Las Vegas shooting.
On October 1, 2017, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock opened fire on the crowd attending the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in… pic.twitter.com/zqE9ImCTjd
— Morbid Knowledge (@Morbidful) June 28, 2024
His shocking acts caused panic among 22k people attending the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival nearby. Sources stated that he used over 1,000 rounds of ammunition, which resulted in the death of 60 people and injured hundreds more.
Shortly after, Paddock took his own life in the hotel room but the details behind this planned attack raised serious questions about security in Vegas. He had meticulously made arrangements, coming into the hotel with 10 large bags full of weapons and ammunition. He even checked into an adjoining suite to give himself more space and a wider vantage point.
The exact motive behind this crime remains unclear, although FBI documents from 2023 suggest that Paddock was frustrated with how the Las Vegas casinos treated him and other gamblers. In the aftermath, the terrorist organization ISIS claimed responsibility, alleging that Paddock had converted to Islam.
However, investigators found no links between him and ISIS. His girlfriend also denied these claims, describing Paddock as an atheist.
