Formula 1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix is set to feature the latest start time in the championship’s history.
Series officials have confirmed that the race, which will be run on a Saturday, will start at 22:00 local time (PST).
This means a start time of 06:00 GMT, and 07:00 CET, on Sunday morning.
Las Vegas will debut on next year’s calendar as the penultimate round of the 24-event season.
The 50-lap race will take place on November 18, marking the first Saturday race in Formula 1 since 1985. Practice will take place on Thursday with qualifying on Friday night.
A 3.8-mile street track will incorporate 17 corners and a stretch of Las Vegas’ iconic Strip.
“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.”
Las Vegas will be one of three US races on the 2023 schedule, with Miami and Austin retaining their slots in early May and late October respectively.
Absurd! Whose timetable is this pandering to?
I don’t care what time it’s on, it shouldn’t be on in that location. No country should ever have more than one race outwith times such as we saw with the global pandemic. Two American races have to be scrapped at once, along with one of the Italian ones. There are plenty of countries able to stage these events, circuits likes Sepang and Kyalami should be holding Formula One races, and a world championship needs to be all over the world, not all over America. If it means getting up early to watch, or staying up late, then that is what true fans will do, when is of little consequence, where counts for very much more.
This seems really weird. Sunset is around 5pm in Vegas that time of year. Why wait around until 10pm?