2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix grid

42 comments on “2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix grid”

1. 

   Sham (@sham)
   18th November 2023, 9:06

   Happy for Williams
   1. 

      Coventry Climax
      18th November 2023, 9:24

      Position wise, alright, but this reveals the strength/weakness balance of their car.
      Fast on straights, poor in corners. To exaggerate, that’s drag race characteristics, not F1 car.
      But they’ve been improving this year, let’s hope they manage to improve on this as well for next season.
2. 

   Ken
   18th November 2023, 9:12

   Poor from Alonso and Aston in Q3 again.I was sure they will finish in top5 easily.
   1. 

      Todfod (@todfod)
      18th November 2023, 10:28

      After Lewis and Sergio got eliminated, it seemed entirely possible for him to line up on P4 on the grid (P3 after Sainz’s penalty). I didn’t see his last Q3 lap, but I was surprised that it was so slow.

      Alonso and Aston do have a trend of making it to Q3, and then lining up either 9th or 10th. Not sure if Alonso is not getting the most out of his last runs, or whether Aston don’t know how to setup the car to get it’s ultimate pace when the track is at its peak in Q3.
      1. 

         Ken
         18th November 2023, 10:41

         Yeah ,not the first time they can´t improve much in Q3 this season, dissapointing.
      2. 

         Sviat
         18th November 2023, 12:28

         I watched the replay, and Alonso said it was a good lap. However, he made an error into the first corner, losing at least one tenth (and four places at the start). His engineer didn’t sound happy.
3. 

   lynn-m
   18th November 2023, 9:17

   This track is dire.

   This & Miami are easily the 2 worst circuits on the F1 schedule right now which is criminal considering how many actually amazing circuits are around in the US.

   And the ‘Oh but there not suitable for F1’ argument doesn’t wash anymore because if they can run on circuits like this, Miami, Baku & Jeddah with high speeds and no runoff then it clearly can’t be true to say that circuits like Watkins Glen, Laguna Seca or Road America aren’t suitable because of the lack of runoff.

   But then we know that it isn’t really about the circuit which is why we have to put up with rubbish like this, Miami, Jeddah & Abu Dhabi.
   1. 

      Terrion (@terrion)
      18th November 2023, 9:24

      I totally agree that Miami and Vegas suck. However I can’t imagine F1 on circuits you mentioned simply because how wide these cars are. I really enjoy Indyacar races there but they simply can’t work for modern F1 cars.
      1. 

         Asd
         18th November 2023, 9:31

         @terrion
         Why do people perpetuate the absolute nonsense that F1 cars are wide?!? They are only 200cm wide. They used to be as wide as 215cm until 1993. IndyCars, CART, ChampCars and Indy Racing League cars also were all wider than 200cm. Stop with that nonsense. The current IndyCar DW12 Dallaras are actually quite small at 195cm, which is still basically the same as F1 cars.
         1. 

            Terrion (@terrion)
            18th November 2023, 10:28

            Thanks for correcting me! I probably heard about th width somewhere and actually didn’t fact check that
      2. 

         lynn-m
         18th November 2023, 9:32

         @terrion indycars are only 10cm narrower.

         Modern F1 cars are 2m wide (As they were before 1998 when they ran on circuits just as narrow/if not narrower) & Indycars are 1.9m wide.
   2. 

      Yes (@come-on-kubica)
      18th November 2023, 9:25

      There’s nothing memorable or of note, it’s bland and soulless. A bit like Vegas itself.
   3. 

      PacificPR (@streydt)
      18th November 2023, 9:40

      +1 it’s Quantity over Quality. These tracks don’t add anything to the calendar. The layout’s of these tracks are purely designed in the hope of chaos and crashes to mix things up – even advertising it as a ‘spectacle’ – but the truth is they undermine all the excellent work that has been done on safety the last decades. For all the money spent on these drab tracks they could have easily created some truly spectacular challenging permanent tracks – maybe even have tried something unconventional. For all I care they could have put an almost exact copy with modern safety features of Laguna Seca or even the old Nurburgring in one of their deserts. I mean even an oval track would be more exciting than this.
      1. 

         pcxmac (@pcxmac)
         18th November 2023, 10:21

         i agree, they should just race at Indy or something. Vegas will need to get a few face lifts going forward, its way too basic, and there is really only 1 or 2 turns that seem to matter.
   4. 

      some racing fan
      18th November 2023, 14:14

      It’s possible to upgrade both Road America and Laguna Seca to F1 standards and make them work more or less as they are (with Laguna Seca needing a slight extension; 2.1 miles is too short for F1)- but not Watkins Glen. The Glen is literally in the middle of nowhere and there are very few hotels and accomodations around there- even if it was upgraded to F1 spec it wouldn’t be able to ably accomodate a sport that has changed dramatically since F1 was last there in 1980. The Glen is 5 hours from New York City and Philadelphia, and 2 1/2 hours from Buffalo and Niagara Falls. And worse- F1 would butcher the circuit, as it is so damned fast- and that none of us would ever stand for.
   5. 

      Matt Jones (@mattj)
      18th November 2023, 14:19

      It’ll never happen but I’d love to see F1 at Road America. It’s up there with Spa in my favourite circuits. It’s got everything you want to see in a race track
      1. 

         some racing fan
         18th November 2023, 14:25

         Road America is probably the best of all the North American circuits, with Watkins Glen, Mosport, Laguna Seca and VIR. Road Atlanta, Sebring, the Daytona road course, Long Beach, Sonoma, Brainerd, Mont-Tremblant, and even the Pikes Peak Hillclimb, among many others are up there too. Indianapolis is super iconic also, and there are some seriously good club-racing circuits all around the US, including one in the Ozarks in southern Missouri and in Monticello in upstate New York near NYC.
4. 

   Asd
   18th November 2023, 9:24

   This track is fantastic.

   But I seriously hope Leclerc has a proper start this time and doesnt lose the lead to Verstappen right away like always basically.
   1. 

      Coventry Climax
      18th November 2023, 9:27

      That you, Toto?
      1. 

         MadMax (@madmax)
         18th November 2023, 9:37

         who’s asking? christian?
      2. 

         Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
         18th November 2023, 11:00

         + 1
   2. 

      lynn-m
      18th November 2023, 9:38

      in what way is this track fantastic? it’s utterly dire. uninspiring, boring, dull, soul-less, offering very little challenge and no spectacle in terms of watching cars driving around it and according to most drivers not very fun to drive.

      it’s simply atrocious. easily one of the top 5 worst i’ve ever seen f1 run at and strangely enough the top 5 are made up mostly of us street circuits.

      vegas, miami, dallas, detroit & the vegas car park would be the worst tracks i’ve seen f1 race at in my time as a fan. abu dhabi, sochi, valencia & jeddah would be the rest of the top 10.
      1. 

         some racing fan
         18th November 2023, 14:20

         I’d replace Vegas, Miami, Dallas and Detroit with AVUS, the Zeltweg Airfield, Nivelles and the original ’89 Phoenix street circuit. Miami’s layout can be tweaked and improved without spending too much, Dallas had a decent layout with potential if it hadn’t been run in the height of a Texas summer and Detroit was repetitive, yes but it had this rough-and-tumble character about it. If Miami isn’t improved, then it probably belongs in that bottom 10 list.
      2. 

         some racing fan
         18th November 2023, 14:29

         But about the Vegas track- I’ve seen a lot worse than that. Sochi, Caesars Palace, the original Phoenix street circuit and the Zeltweg Airfield are way worse. It’s not really all that bad- but they could make the left at Sands Avenue that goes onto to the Strip straight about 30 mph faster and the left that goes onto Sands Avenue near the Sphere faster. But I don’t think they are doing a great job photographing this race- most of the camera angles, particularly the ones on the Strip straight are no good and need to be re-thought.
5. 

   MadMax (@madmax)
   18th November 2023, 9:35

   Well done Ferrari… Negative bullies not on pole, thats how it should be
   1. 

      Red Andy (@red-andy)
      18th November 2023, 9:52

      Third and tenth though, definitely within range of their rivals for P2 in the WCC.
   2. 

      melanos
      18th November 2023, 9:56

      And Merc’s well behind, that’s almost how it should be. Out for > 107% would be better.
6. 

   thegamer23
   18th November 2023, 9:36

   Strong contender for the most bland and feature-less track of the season award.
   Doesn’t even look like a challenge for the drivers, hardly any moments or exciting bits.
   1. 

      melanos
      18th November 2023, 10:00

      Ex-aequo with Miami. Not anti-American, COTA is awright. And I dream of Laguna Seca being F1-ready. But Lost Wages and My Amy are beyond embarrassing
7. 

   Tommy C (@tommy-c)
   18th November 2023, 9:52

   I’ll reserve passing judgement on the circuit till after the race. The grid certainly promises an entertaining one with a few quick cars out of position and the Williams seemingly genuinely quick. I suspect Alonso will put in a decent showing too. I’m sure he’s pretty disappointed with his qualifying. Here’s hoping Charlie can take the start and have a genuine shot at victory.
8. 

   RR
   18th November 2023, 10:03

   Alas, Piastri between Ocon and Tsunoda. Just where he doesn’t want to be at the first corner.
9. 

   pcxmac (@pcxmac)
   18th November 2023, 10:19

   Looks like Hamilton is playing the long game, while Verstappen blocks an Alpine, intentionally, and gets no penalty. Thats pretty much all I got out of qualifying. Williams, will just make it difficult for anyone to get out of the top 6, and attack the podium. If Sergio can time his passes, and everything else, maybe a podium. Aston looking like the dark horse.
   1. 

      Todfod (@todfod)
      18th November 2023, 10:31

      I don’t think that Williams will be able to stop the DRS party on Sunday.. not unless they stay within a second of Gasly or whoever else is in front of them.

      Aston might be better on Sunday as their FP2 pace was impressive, but they blew their opportunity today. If they wanted another podium, Alonso needed to qualify in the top 6.
   2. 

      MadMax (@madmax)
      18th November 2023, 10:50

      The blocking of Verstappen wasnt even investigated. Keeping up with the Verstappens show since the embarrassing end of 2021 is beyond ridiculous.
      1. 

         Billy Rae Flop
         18th November 2023, 17:18

         Although they were both on a lap it really ought to have been looked at because he did ruin ocons lap. And very decisively so, total divebomb that nearly caused a collision, but for ocons backing out. Very familiar.
10. 

    Ben
    18th November 2023, 10:33

    It’s getting harder and harder to defend Hamilton. He has moments like Hungry where I see how great he can be, but dropping out in Q2 when your teammate is in the top 3 is just pathetic.

    It’s happening more and more and I’m starting to think he’s past it.
    1. 

       Postreader
       18th November 2023, 10:47

       He’s way ahead in points and tied on qualifying. I hope someone passes along that Ben from the Racefans comment section is unhappy with his performance, though.
    2. 

       MadMax (@madmax)
       18th November 2023, 10:51

       I dont know the exact numbers of their team qualy head to head, but he is not behind I think. And WDC standings also show you are wrong.
       1. 

          Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
          18th November 2023, 11:03

          If I had a space in my team, and the money, I’d still choose Lewis over George.
    3. 

       S
       18th November 2023, 14:13

       It’s getting harder and harder to defend Hamilton.

       You don’t have to. He probably wouldn’t even want you to.
11. 

    Sham (@sham)
    18th November 2023, 11:16

    If only someone could’ve predicted that the fences and walls would take away the only good thing about the track, in some eyes – not mine, the location.

    Then to try add some spectacle, we have super long camera angles which make the cars look like they’re out for a Sunday family outing.

    And the track layout itself is just appalling.
12. 

    Imre (@f1mre)
    18th November 2023, 12:22

    I’d watch this track under daylight. Or close to/during sunset.

    And I wish they put light grey concrete instead of black asphalt.

    Quali reiterated my feelings that we do not need this many night races. Takes away from the character of a track as you cannot see anything other than the tarmac, walls and fences.

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