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F1's foray into Las Vegas has begun, with Bono, the lead singer of famous Irish band U2, promoting the race next weekend in a unique but somewhat unusual manner.
Las Vegas is set to host the inaugural F1 Las Vegas GP, the penultimate race of the 2023 season. Max Verstappen has already been crowned world champion and Red Bull has wrapped up the constructor title, leaving the others to battle it out for the remaining positions.
U2, meanwhile, was performing a show at the Las Vegas Sphere, during which lead singer Bono called F1 a sport where drivers "climb onto rockets and try to stay on Earth and not achieve orbit." Bono then went ahead and introduced his band as Formula 1 drivers, saying:
"On the drums, Max Verstappen! On the bass, the most elegant man on the circuit. Who is it? Lewis Hamilton on the bass! And on guitar, the Monaco model himself, Charles Leclerc."
He further said that he is the right person to bring peace between the two biggest motorsports, Formula 1 and NASCAR:
"And I am the right person to bring peace between Formula 1 and NASCAR! On vocals, Daniel Ricciardo."
F1 world champion Max Verstappen seemingly unimpressed with Las Vegas GP
While there is certainly excitement in Sin City for the F1 Grand Prix, the track layout doesn't seem to be that impressive. There was ample work done around the streets to facilitate them for a race, but the densely packed city poses a challenge in creating a racing track.
The layout is mostly made up of long straights (including the Las Vegas Strip) and a handful of corners. When Max Verstappen was asked about it, he replied that the race was more for the 'show' than the racing itself.
Motorsport quoted him as saying:
"First of all, I think we are there more for the show than the racing itself if you look at the layout of the track. But you know, I'm actually not that into it. I'm more like, I'll go there and do my thing and be gone again."
The race in Las Vegas is set to be held on Saturday, November 18. In the current calendar, this is the only race held on a Saturday, which is done to accommodate the European audience because of the time zones. This will also mark the third and final race in the United States of the season.
