F1 News: What did we learn from the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix?

The second Las Vegas Grand Prix is done and dusted, with the 2024 winner proving to be Mercedes’ George Russell. Mercedes enjoyed a rare one-two finish in Nevada, with Lewis Hamilton crossing the finish line seven seconds behind his teammate.

Success for Mercedes and a disappointing sixth and seventh-placed finishes for McLaren meant that Red Bull’s star man, Max Verstappen, was once again crowned world champion for the 2024 season. There’s no better place to celebrate than Las Vegas. But, as the dust settles on a fourth world title for Verstappen, what else did we learn from the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix?

Las Vegas is becoming a genuine sporting destination

“Sin City” is so much more than what it used to be. In its infancy as a tourist resort, Las Vegas was all about the live shows and the nightlife. It then evolved into the gaming capital of the world, with casino resorts lining both sides of the Las Vegas Boulevard Strip. While some aspects of its gaming have waned, Vegas is still the home of live poker. It’s the place where any aspiring poker player goes to make it in the big time.

Tourists enjoy sitting down at their poker rooms and pitting their wits against the professionals and that’s part of the beauty of this classic card game. Thanks to the internet, it’s easier than ever to learn poker strategy and basic dynamics, with casual players having the freedom to hone their skills at home, ensuring serious footfall year in, year out. That’s why Vegas is still the location for the World Series of Poker (WSOP) and its show-stopping Main Event, which attracts tens of thousands of entrants every year.

But, thanks to the arrival of the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the NHL and the Las Vegas Raiders in the NFL, Vegas has become so much more of a sporting destination too. The stunning construction of the Allegiant Stadium, alongside the popular T-Mobile Arena, put Vegas well and truly on the global sporting map. It was enough to catch the eye of Liberty Media, whose efforts to increase F1’s exposure stateside have been richly rewarded in the Nevada desert.

Mercedes seem to fly in cold conditions

It’s no longer a coincidence – the Mercedes’ car seems to thrive in cold weather. Race winner, George Russell, admitted he had no idea how the car was achieving such pace, but he was happy to “ride this wave” for the time being.

Mercedes looked promising in practice and, for once this season, backed up their practice form with cold, hard lap times in qualifying and in the race.

When quizzed on their race pace, Mercedes’ team boss, Toto Wolff, said it was all about the Vegas weather conditions. He said the cooler night temperatures meant their chosen tires were “in the right temperature window” for the race. It gave Russell a crucial boost, especially in the opening sector of his qualifying and race laps.

Red Bull’s lack of low downforce rear wing came to the fore

Once again, Red Bull showed a glaring lack of straight line speed in Las Vegas. Although Verstappen looked promising in the opening third of the race, the Dutchman was never in genuine contention. The team’s hefty rear wing has started to become more of a problem. Several of their rivals have deployed skinnier rear wings in recent times, but Red Bull didn’t have the budget cap to do so.

It appears they’ll need to make a lower-downforce wing a greater priority for the coming seasons if they are to avoid being caught up and overtaken by the likes of Mercedes and McLaren. It’s something that Max’s father, Jos, is clearly concerned about, as per recent interviews.

The skid block loophole is no more thanks to the FIA

With the Las Vegas Grand Prix circus in full swing, news dropped that the FIA had moved to block a loophole following the Brazilian Grand Prix surrounding plank wear. Teams were retrofitting additional supporting skids which were thicker than the intended rules, despite remaining in compliance with vertical stiffness obligations. The FIA issued a new technical directive to ban thicker supporting skids from being fitted from this weekend onwards.