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Formula 1‘s grand prix on the iconic Las Vegas Strip was meant to be the most iconic site in all of world motorsports.
But according to a new report, the series is reportedly exploring leaving The Strip for another nearby location after constant pushback from Las Vegas residents.
The inaugural race in 2023 ran into several problems, from pricing, to the track surface, and even the timing of the race itself.
One year later, Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com says that the race could move off of The Strip and to a more favorable location near Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The permanent speedway, which currently has a road course that runs around the exterior of the oval traffic, is located about 20 minutes north of The Strip outside of the city limits.
Las Vegas Residents Pushing Formula 1 To Move Race Off Of The Strip
“LVSportsBiz.com has learned there is talk behind the public scenes of the idea of moving the F1 race from the Strip to the Speedway site,” Snel reports. “Let us be clear, we are not talking about moving the F1 race into the 1.5-mile, tri-turn track. Instead, we are proposing F1 build a track on the grounds of the Speedway that can use the site much like the F1 event at the Dolphins stadium in Miami-Dade County.”
There are just a few problems with that.
The entire appeal of a race in Las Vegas is The Strip. The race is as much, if not more about the spectacle than the racing itself.
There are plenty of more suitable locations for a third F1 race in the United States than Las Vegas is The Strip is not being used.
Additionally, Formula 1 built a permanent paddock on The Strip that it now uses as it’s U.S. headquarters.
Lastly, there’s no incentive for F1 to move off The Strip. It would cost them, or the city, an insane amount of money to rebuild the road course at LVMS. That would be necessarily before the series could ever host a grand prix there.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway isn’t anywhere near equipped to host an event so large.
Formula 1 has since denied the claim to Adam Stern of Sports Business Journal.
.@F1LasVegas has denied a line from https://t.co/lWktziq4qS that there is behind-scenes talks of moving the grand prix to Speedway Motorsports’ LVMS in the future, with SVP of corporate affairs Lori Nelson-Kraft saying: “There is no talk behind the scenes to relocate the event.” pic.twitter.com/c42UivpTan
— Adam Stern (@A_S12) October 24, 2024
Ultimately, it’s hard to see this report having any legs. If F1 isn’t on The Strip, it won’t be Las Vegas. And if Las Vegas wants an F1 race, it’s only ever going to be on The Strip.