With the Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend approaching, let’s take a look back to the first grand prix run in Las Vegas. The original circuit was far less glitzy, but equally entertaining held at Caesar’s Palace. Carlos Reutemann and Nelson Piquet battled in the 15th and final round of the 1981 season for the Drivers’ Championship title.
The Vegas Grand Prix continued for another year before going on for the lengthy hiatus until 2023.
The ‘Track’
Unlike today’s flashy night street circuit, featuring dazzling lights and the Las Vegas Sphere, the original track in the 1980s was drawn around the car park of the Caesar Palace Hotel, from which it derives its name.
It was brought in to replace the Watkins Glen track in New York, which declared bankruptcy in 1980, but the Las Vegas track was approved only in time for the 1981 season. The 14 turns covering approximately 3.6 km of distance that the drivers had to run 75 laps of were criticised by the drivers because it required them to drive anticlockwise rather than clockwise, and it strained their necks because they were not used to it, combined with the desert heat.
The ‘track’ was built in less than two months with an expectation of selling out, with fans partaking for the sake of gambling, as witnessed during boxing matches held in the same area with far less infrastructure as the sport had not made its mark in the country just yet.
Piquet’s First Championship
Although the battle between Reutemann and Piquet went on till the last race with on a one point gap between the two, French driver Jacquez Lafitte had a good chance of taking the title if he had won the race; however, he finished sixth, just behind Nelson Piquet, who went on to win the WDC that year because Reutemann failed to finish ahead of the Brazilian driver.
During the race weekend, Piquet was said to have become seriously ill from the heat and received massages after suffering from the ‘Las Vegas neck’. He was also said to have vomited inside his helmet as a result of the tiresome race.
This was Piquet’s first World Driver’s championship and he then went on to win in 1983 and 1987.
End of the Parking Lot for Formula One
The Las Vegas-Caesar Palace race was cancelled after only two seasons due to lower than expected attendance, but it was not the end of the circuit, as IndyCar took over for the next two seasons with a new layout.
Written by Isha.
Featured Image Credit: automoto.it
About The Author
Leave a Reply