Las Vegas
RACING LINES
Chris Medland looks at the big stories
ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix
Mclaren
NORRIS GAINING CONTROL, BUT CAN PIASTRI HIT BACK?
The Mexico City Grand Prix was a dominant performance from Lando Norris, and he followed that with an extremely productive visit to Interlagos. The outright car pace was not as strong compared to the rest of the field as it had been in Mexico, but Norris topped all of the sessions that matter to take pole position and win both the Sprint and the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
Coupled with Oscar Piastri crashing out of the Sprint and being limited to fifth place by a penalty in the race on the Sunday, the gap between the two McLaren drivers has now extended to 24 points, meaning Norris can afford to finish second to Piastri in the remaining three races and Qatar Sprint and still win the title.
But Piastri did show signs of progress compared to his previous two weekends, with stronger pace putting him in the mix for second place on both occasions in Brazil, and errors or penalties hurting his chances more than his competitive level.
If Piastri can continue that improvement and have a clean weekend then he will have every chance of fighting with Norris – wherever that may be in the order – and could keep things close heading to the final two rounds.
red bull
VERSTAPPEN THE OUTSIDER BUT NOT FULLY OUT
It was this very feature ahead of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix that highlighted the need for Max Verstappen to stay in the fight in Brazil to give himself a chance of winning a fifth straight Drivers’ title, and the way the weekend panned out showed how much jeopardy there was for his hopes.
Sunday saw a brilliant recovery drive from the Dutchman, but Verstappen still lost points to Norris in both races and now sits 49 adrift in the standings with 83 still to play for.
The equation is pretty simple for Verstappen, who needs a big points swing in his favour in Las Vegas to be in with any kind of realistic chance of winning the title. But stranger things have happened, and it could well be Vegas that offers the opportunity to close in once again.
McLaren have traditionally not been strong in Las Vegas, while Verstappen won here in 2023 and beat Lando Norris to fifth place behind the two Mercedes and Ferrari drivers in 2024. If the form seen on Sunday at Interlagos can be repeated, then Verstappen will likely be in the frame for victory – and if the track conditions don’t suit McLaren, he could drag himself back into the championship picture.
mercedes
MERCEDES' HOPES OF LEADING THE WAY
One aspect of Las Vegas that could be both a blessing and a curse for Verstappen’s hopes is the potential competitiveness of Mercedes.
Last year, Mercedes dominated on the city streets, thriving in the cool conditions to secure a 1-2 finish that saw George Russell cruise to victory from pole position, while Lewis Hamilton had to recover from 10th on the grid to finish second.
It’s a performance that has increased expectations on what Toto Wolff’s team might be able to achieve this weekend, when it is again expected to be cold.
While Mercedes can still be very competitive at times – as evidenced by Kimi Antonelli’s performance as he finished second twice in Brazil, and Russell’s two victories so far this year – they also appear to have ironed out some of the car’s inconsistencies, creating a bit more of a question mark over whether Las Vegas will suit them as much as last year.
A strong Mercedes would be tough for Verstappen and McLaren to beat, but would also offer the potential for bigger points swings if they are in between the title contenders. When you also include last year’s closest challenger, Ferrari – who need a big score after the double DNF at Interlagos hurt their hopes of finishing second in the Teams' Championship – then it feels like a weekend that could have significant ramifications on a number of fronts.
audi & cadillac
NEW ARRIVALS RAMPING UP PREPARATIONS
Away from the action in Las Vegas, there have been a number of key milestones for two new teams that are going to be on the grid in 2026.
Ahead of the final triple header of the year, Audi took the opportunity to launch their brand image for next year, displaying the main colours that will make up their livery and identity on a concept car in Munich. The event last week saw iconic Audi racing cars provide a reminder of their motorsport heritage, while the target of fighting for titles from 2030 onwards was also outlined.
The following day, Cadillac were also pushing ahead with important work ahead of their debut in 2026, with a Testing of Previous Car (TPC) outing for Sergio Perez at Imola.
The test was organised in partnership with Ferrari, as Cadillac don’t yet have their own machinery that they can use for such running. So a 2023-specification SF-23 was provided, as Ferrari will be supplying Cadillac with power units in their first seasons in the sport.
Perez was able to get back up to speed in F1 machinery after nearly a year out as he prepares for his own return. And while much of the recent focus has been on the end of the current season, both teams are helping build excitement for the sport’s new era.
LAS VEGAS
GREAT RACING IN UNUSUAL CONDITIONS
Las Vegas always promised to be a spectacular weekend event from the moment its place on the F1 calendar was confirmed, but at the heart of it, the organisers have provided a track that has encouraged really exciting racing in its first two years.
The inaugural edition in particular was a thriller, with Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez fighting it out for victory almost the entire race, with the final order for the top three only decided with two corners to go.
The long straight on Las Vegas Boulevard puts a premium on top speed and low drag, but teams and drivers want downforce from their cars too, in order to be able to put heat into their tyres amid low temperatures at night time in Nevada.
The current forecast for the weekend suggests the race could well take place in single-digit temperatures (in terms of Celsius), making it the coldest race of the year and providing a different challenge for the entire grid to contend with.
TYRES
WHAT TYRES WILL THE DRIVERS HAVE IN LAS VEGAS?
A combination of the C3 as the hard, the C4 as the medium and the C5 as the soft will be deployed at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, which mixes tight, twisty sequences with flat-out straights.
Drivers will get two sets of the hard tyre (marked white), three sets of the medium tyre (marked yellow), and eight sets of the soft tyre (marked red), as well as access to the green intermediate tyre and the blue full wets, should they be required.
An extra set of softs is reserved for those who reach Q3 in Qualifying, while all drivers must use at least two different slick compounds during the race, providing the track is dry.
“One of the main challenges will be tyre temperature management, especially during Qualifying," points out Pirelli’s weekend preview.
“The fact the sessions are running earlier this year will help the drivers, as conditions won’t be quite as cold, thus helping tyre warm-up. However, the preparation lap prior to the flying lap will still be crucial to get the tyres up into the right temperature window.
“Furthermore, this year’s tyres have improved mechanical properties, which should see a reduction in degradation, which was particularly noticeable on the medium compound last year.
“The decision not to go for a softer trio was down to the risk of graining, prevalent since the first edition of this race, which could excessively compromise the efficiency of the softest compound in the current range.”
