The rich and famous gathered for last weekend's inaugural Formula 1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas, with musicians like Axl Rose, Rod Stewart, U2, Thirty Seconds To Mars and Journey joining red carpet regulars like LeBron James, Brad Pitt, Shaquille O'Neal, Rihanna, Heidi Klum, Gordon Ramsey, Justin Bieber, Paris Hilton and Mickey Rourke to watch the 192-mile race.
It appears that Guns N' Roses frontman Rose had busy schedule, not only being pictured with Red Bull Team Principal and star of the Netlfix series Formula 1: Drive to Survive Christian "Mr Ginger Spice" Horner, but hanging around the pit lane with Metallica's Robert Trujillo and being interviewed by the likes of Sky Sports and Swedish video streaming company Visplay.
In the Visplay interview, reporter Mervi Kallio asks Axl about his friendship with Finnish driver Kimi Räikkönen, whom Axl thanked in the sleeve notes for Guns N' Roses' 2008 album Chinese Democracy.
"I've been a fan of his for a while," says Axl. "I always watched him back in the day, and we get along really well."
In a 2009 interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Räikkönen claimed he didn't know why he was thanked on the album, but did confirm the pair's friendship.
"We do know each other very well, we have met several times through the years," said Räikkönen. "The first time we met was years ago, at one of the F1 races I competed in. Afterwards, he came to Finland once and we met again."
The Las Vegas Grand Prix was won by Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Red Bull's Sergio Pérez filling the podium positions. Räikkönen retired from Formula 1 in 2021.
Chose plutôt rare, Axl Rose, grand fan de #Formule1 est allé à Las Vegas ces derniers jours pour suivre la course. Robert Trujillo était aussi présent. #GunsNRoses #MetallicA pic.twitter.com/uI5MjjWLwcNovember 20, 2023
Axl Rose in F1 Las Vegas race tonight #gunsnroses #gnr #gnfnr pic.twitter.com/kbUMaxSpnKNovember 19, 2023
