The schedule for next season’s glitzy Las Vegas Grand Prix has been announced by Formula 1, with the race set to become the first to take place on a Saturday since 1985.
The race which unsurprisingly will take place at night, will start at 22:00 (PST) local time, meaning that for those in the United Kingdom who wish to watch the spectacle will have to be in front of their screens by 06:00 (GMT) Sunday morning on 18th November next year.
By taking place on a Saturday, it will be the fourth time in the sport’s history that the main spectacle has taken place on the first day of the weekend, something which has resulted in much criticism from the F1 community.
The Las Vegas GP will be the penultimate round of the 2023 season, with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix scheduled to be the season finale, once again, taking place the weekend following Las Vegas.
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There appears to be a huge logistical problem, though, with having Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi as a double header, with the flight time between the two taking an astonishing 19 hours.
Due to the race taking place on a Saturday, FP1 and FP2 will take place on the Thursday, with FP3 and qualifying on the Friday.
The Las Vegas circuit, which will feature part of the iconic strip, is set to be 3.8-miles long and will incorporate 17 corners, which drivers will have to navigate over the course of 50 laps.
It will be the final of three American races in 2022, with the other two taking place as usual in Miami and Austin.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali is expecting Las Vegas to take the sport to the “next level”, with it set to be a “spectacular celebration”.
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“The Las Vegas Grand Prix is going to take F1 race weekends to the next level,” said F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
“Staging a Grand Prix in the sports and entertainment capital of the world has allowed us to plan a truly spectacular celebration that has never been seen in our sport before, in the greatest arena on earth.
“The entire city is buzzing with excitement for next year’s race. Our fans simply don’t want to miss this event. It is clear the Las Vegas Grand Prix will be THE must-have ticket for 2023.”