This weekend’s highly anticipated Las Vegas Grand Prix has created a huge divide between the sport and the local residents, who are furious at how their daily life has been impacted by large scale construction work.
With Formula 1 promoting the Las Vegas GP themselves, significant work has been done to ensure that it’s one of the biggest events in the world, exceeding the likes of the Super Bowl.
F1 is under immense pressure to ensure that the sport’s first race in Vegas since 1982 is a success, given the backlash they’ve received throughout the entirety of the event’s build-up.
Local residents have spoken out in numbers at how they’ve been treated with “blatant disdain”, as various roads have been closed over recent months to get everything prepared for the Grand Prix.
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The teams and the drivers can’t wait to race in Vegas, whereas the residents can’t wait for them to be on their flights back home.
“Life as I knew it ended when that construction started,” local author Lisa Lindell told Jalopnik.
One of the biggest frustrations amongst local residents is the complete “lack of information and coordination”, with simple four-mile journeys having become four-hour slogs.
There are reports that no hotel workers want to complete a shift whilst F1 is in town, whilst one of the biggest strikes in the history of the United States has successfully been avoided.
“The frustration, inconvenience and blatant disdain for residents living in Las Vegas is evident by the lack of information and coordination with everyone except the promoters of this exhibition,” a local Vegas resident named Celeste said.
As expected with hosting an F1 race, flight and hotel prices have gone through the roof for those wanting to attend and for general tourists, something which could impact the casinos.
Vegas is famous for its gambling, to the point that one resident admitted “the casinos run this town”.
The local resident believes that F1’s owners aren’t used to having to work with businesses as large as the ones down the iconic Vegas Strip, who will likely be impacted by the Grand Prix.
If the casinos don’t rake in enough money this weekend to make up for the “pain from construction and teardown”, then F1 has been warned that the “race will be dead”.
“The casinos run this town,” another anonymous resident said.
“Liberty Media is used to bilking sponsors, municipalities, and remote race tracks. They are not accustomed to dealing with very high-powered corporations who are in the business of doing the bilking, not being bilked.
“If the casinos don’t see a massive recurring profit that offsets the pain from construction and teardown, then this race will be dead. No one gives a crap about the sport. No one.”
Whilst the vast majority of the local residents are just wanting the Grand Prix over, one resident has actually praised the sport.
It was noted by a local Vegas resident that a “huge part of Las Vegas Boulevard”, which hasn’t been worked on for “more than 20 years”, has finally been repaved thanks to F1 spending $90 million.
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This resident pointed out that whilst F1 will use the pavements for the Grand Prix, the rest of the time it’ll be used purely by those in Vegas, to the point that the “country benefits”.
“Before you blame a single event for all the problems in Las Vegas, buy a plane ticket, rent a car and see for yourself,” said a resident who wanted to remain anonymous.
“A handful of vocal people want to blame F1 for the terrible condition of our local streets. F1 is spending $90 million to repave a huge part of Las Vegas Boulevard that hasn’t been repaved for more than 20 years. [The series] will use this pavement for three days. The rest of the year, the county benefits.”