With the third Formula 1 break of the season just about over, the grid now heads to the final race on the North American tour–to the lights and glamour of Las Vegas.
The last three races, including this one, will be run at night (although the final round in Abu Dhabi begins at dusk). Las Vegas is the 22nd round of the 2024 championship and an opportunity for Max Verstappen and his Red Bull to clinch his fourth world championship in the Driver’s category.
Besides the chance for Verstappen to take his fourth title, there is also the chance for Lando Norris and his McLaren team to split the championship, which (if it happens) would dethrone Red Bull and win the Constructors Championship. Norris threatened Verstappen until the last two races when the Briton failed to place in the points. Moreover, Verstappen’s brave drive in Brazil in the heavy rain proved that the Dutchman could overcome obstacles and come out on top.
Verstappen now holds a 62-point lead, and for Norris to have any chance to overcome this, he must hope that Verstappen will have serious difficulties, which seems nearly impossible.
While the Driver’s title might be almost finished, McLaren still has a good chance for the Constructor’s Championship–if Norris and his teammate, Oscar Piastri, consistently finish in the top ten-point positions. Red Bull now sits in third place, with the Ferrari duo of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in second.
As for this weekend’s Grand Prix, the second annual event will be run on the Las Vegas Strip late Saturday night. Remember last year when Sainz struck a drain plug in Friday practice, which nearly wrecked his Ferrari? But organizers say they have fixed the problem, and circuit issues shouldn’t plague this year’s race.
The question is whether Verstappen can win here as he did last year. A fourth World Championship would make him one of only a few drivers in Formula One history to have won more than three championships (Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton seven, Juan Manuel Fangio five, and Sebastian Vettel and Alain Prost four).
