As Formula 1 heads to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Max Verstappen opened up about how he feels about the circuit.
"First of all, I think we are there more for the show than the racing itself if you look at the layout of the track," Verstappen said. "But you know, I'm more like, I'll go there and do my thing and be gone again."
Verstappen has already locked up his third driver's championship this year. The only thing that matters to Verstappen this weekend in Las Vegas is winning his 18th race of the season, extending his single-season wins record.
The world champion is not by himself, though, when it comes to the view of the race in Las Vegas. Former Formula 1 chief financial officer Bernie Ecclestone is not happy about what will transpire this weekend. In the 1980s, Ecclestone proposed to have the cars race on the strip, but it never gained enough momentum to bring the series there when he was in charge.
Speaking with the Dutch publication NOS, Ecclestone said, "I'm not really looking forward to it. Why not? It has nothing to do with Formula 1."
On the other hand, Haas team boss Guenther Steiner expressed his excitement for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix.
"It's hard to imagine exactly what it will be like, but it will be a very cool event and something completely different from anything done before in Formula 1," Steiner said. "To put such effort into racing in a city like Las Vegas is challenging. Let's see what it will be like, but it will surely set a standard for a lot of things in the sport going forward."
The wait is over and the excitement is building! ?
Get ready for a race week like no other ?#F1 #LasVegasGP https://t.co/cRy9QjqUvX
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 13, 2023
Only time will tell regarding the event's success as whole. There is the racing product, which has not been the best to begin with this season, and then there is the atmosphere plus the fan experience. The city of Las Vegas will be certainly buzzing this whole week leading up to the race. Verstappen and Ecclestone are not thrilled about the event, but others including Steiner, are excited for what this weekend could lead to for Formula 1.
