Lewis Hamilton has hailed the Las Vegas Grand Prix as a huge win for Formula 1 and hit out at critics of the race in the build-up.
Max Verstappen may have sealed an 18th win of a thoroughly one-sided 2023 season but the inaugural street race in Sin City proved arguably the best of the season as Verstappen repeatedly jostled for the lead with teammate Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Verstappen was among the most vocal in his criticism of a Vegas race calling it “99 per cent show, 1 per cent sporting event’.
But Hamilton, who ended yesterday’s race in seventh place, said: “There have been many people being so negative about the ‘show’ and all that. Just let it be and see how it goes. This is like Baku but better.
“It is a huge win for Formula 1. People have talked about bringing old classics back from Europe but this has provided a better race than most of the tracks we go to, so hats off to the people who run it. I cannot wait to come back and hopefully have a better race next year.”
Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur praised F1 bosses and race organisers for setting “a new standard for F1” with the overall weekend and conceded it “was probably the best race of the season”.
And Hamilton’s team principal Toto Wolff said: “That was an awesome weekend. Spectacular race, great audiences, mega event, some good racing at the front. That’s what I will remember of the inaugural Las Vegas race that ticked all the boxes.”
Verstappen, who sung ‘Viva Las Vegas’ as he took the chequered flag, conceded in the aftermath “it was a lot of fun”.
But he was among those calling for a change to the schedule which saw one practice session finish at 4am, qualifying start at midnight and the race itself beginning at 10pm local time, all aimed at working to suit European audiences.
And his team boss Christian Horner said: “It’s been brutal. I think everybody’s leaving Vegas slightly f*****. We need to look at how we can improve that. Maybe run it a little earlier in the evening?
“You’re never going to keep every television audience totally happy. This is an American race. If you ran at 8pm or something like that, it would just be a bit more comfortable for those working behind the scenes.”
