The 2024 Formula One season is rapidly coming to an end with just three races remaining over the next three weekends. The sprint to the finish begins with the final race in the United States for the year at the second annual Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The tremendous spectacle of the world’s best racers dueling on the Las Vegas strip was a hit last year, even with the late-night start and loose manhole cover debacle in the first practice session. This year, the race comes at a critical point in the calendar, in the midst of the most exciting title championship battle since 2021.
Max Verstappen established nearly complete control in the drivers’ standings with one of the most impressive drives of his career in the Brazilian Grand Prix earlier this month, extending his lead back out to 62 points. Though Lando Norris’s positive momentum may have been stifled, he hasn’t been mathematically eliminated just yet, and there’s still all to play for in the constructor’s championship with McLaren maintaining a narrow advantage over Ferrari and Red Bull.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the second annual Las Vegas Grand Prix, including how to watch every second of the action.
What Happened in the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix
Under the lights on the Las Vegas strip, the inaugural race in Sin City delivered plenty of action in what was the penultimate event of the 2023 season. The Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz stunned the field in qualifying with the two quickest times, though the latter took on a 10-place grid penalty, bumping Max Verstappen up onto the front row for the race.
From there, Verstappen went on to win his 18th race of the season—but not without a fight. The three-time world champion took on a five-second penalty early for forcing Leclerc off the track at the first corner and later made contact with George Russell in a collision that the Mercedes driver was later deemed responsible for. Despite all of that Verstappen was able to hold off Leclerc, who passed Sergio Perez on the final lap to secure second. Perez rounded out the podium and officially secured second place in the drivers' standings with the result going into the season finale in Abu Dhabi.
Full Race Weekend Schedule
After the last F1 race that took place stateside—the United States Grand Prix—featured a sprint race, the Las Vegas Grand Prix will return to the format of a traditional race weekend. That means that teams will have three practice sessions and qualifying before hitting the circuit to compete for points.
That being said, the race in Las Vegas still does follow a rather unorthodox schedule due to its position in the Pacific time zone and the desire from race organizers to have the event take place at night. Instead of the actual Grand Prix taking place on Sunday, the race will begin on Saturday night in local time—the only such event to do so on the calendar this season. That means the race starts very early on Sunday morning on the east coast of the United States and between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. local time for the bulk of the European audience.
Here's a look at the complete schedule for the weekend.
How to Watch the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix
Because of the late-night schedule, F1 won’t have to compete with the NFL or college football for air time. ESPN, as usual, will carry the race for fans in the United States, with qualifying and the Grand Prix airing on the network’s flagship station.
If it’s too much trouble to stay awake into the early morning on the East Coast, the race will be available on ESPN+ after the checkered flag. The streaming service will also show the practice sessions on Thursday and Friday.
Here’s what channel to tune into for each session:
What’s Happened So Far During the 2024 F1 Season?
Verstappen raced out to a lead early in the year, giving the feeling that this F1 season would look similar to the last two, with the Red Bull driver dominating the rest of the field to power his way to championships for himself and the team. However, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc, along with McLaren and Ferrari as a whole, started to apply the pressure over the summer—making for a far more interesting battle.
At least until the Brazilian Grand Prix early this month.
Verstappen, who got an unlucky break in qualifying and needed to take a 10-place grid, started in 17th—which should have given the advantage to Norris who started in pole position. However, the rain poured down at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo, leveling out the field and allowing some drivers to flex their skills in the wet conditions. Verstappen did that better than anyone else, carving his way through the field in the early laps and then executing his pit stop strategy to perfection. Once he nabbed the lead, the three-time world champion coasted, winning by nearly 20 seconds. Norris fell all the way down to sixth by the checkered flag.
The result allowed Verstappen even more control over his own destiny this season. If he finishes in the points—as he has in all but one race this season—and ahead of Norris in Las Vegas, he’ll win a fourth world championship. Even if he doesn’t, something would have to go terribly wrong in every one of the next three races for Norris to pull back within striking distance.
Though the drivers’ championship may be nearly decided, the team battle remains muddled. Thanks to Verstappen’s outing in Brazil, Red Bull is back within 50 points of leader McLaren. Ferrari remains sandwiched between the two teams, a mere 36 points back. Because two drivers for each outfit factor in each race weekend, there’s still plenty of opportunities for a bigger swing—starting this weekend in Vegas.
What to Expect From This Year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix
Given Ferrari’s success at the circuit last year, it bears watching how Leclerc and Sainz come out in the early stages of the weekend. Brazil wasn’t the best outing for the team, but this weekend presents a major chance to cut into McLaren’s lead, especially if Norris is preoccupied with trying to hold off Verstappen.
Still, going against Verstappen after what he did the last time out feels like a fool’s errand. The Red Bull driver reminded everyone in and around the paddock as well as those watching on television why he’s quickly earned a reputation as one of the greatest drivers in modern F1 history. Further cementing his legacy under the lights on the Las Vegas strip would just be the latest way to cement his current place on F1’s throne.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Las Vegas Grand Prix: How to Watch, Full Schedule and What to Expect.
