36°07′1″N 115°10′30″W / 36.11694°N 115.17500°W / 36.11694; -115.17500

Caesars Palace Grand Prix
Caesars Palace
(1981–1984)
Race information
Number of times held4
First held1981
Last held1984
Most wins (drivers)No repeat winners
Most wins (constructors)No repeat winners
Circuit length3.650 km (2.268 miles)
Race length273.750 km (170.100 miles)
Laps75
Last race (1984)
Pole position
Podium
Fastest lap

The Caesars Palace Grand Prix was an annual car race held in Las Vegas, US from 1981 to 1984. In 1981 and 1982 the race was part of the Formula One World Championship and featured a 2.268 mile (3.650 km), 14 turn Grand Prix layout; in 1983 and 1984 it became a round of the CART Indy car series and featured a 5 turn 1.125 mile (1.811 km) distorted oval layout. Nissan/Datsun was a presenting sponsor of the races.[1] The races were held on a temporary circuit in the car park of the Caesars Palace hotel.[2][3][4]

History

Derek Warwick (Toleman TG182 Hart) at Las Vegas in 1982.

There had been Can-Am races at the Stardust International Raceway in the mid to late 1960s, but that circuit was bought by developers and then demolished in 1970. The first race was originally supposed to take place as the last race of the 1980 season on November 2, 4 weeks after the US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. But when Watkins Glen went off the schedule after 1980, the Caesars' Palace Grand Prix gained importance, and more effort was put forth by Bernie Ecclestone and others to make sure this Las Vegas race went ahead. The new race ended the year, whereas Long Beach, only 300 mi (480 km) away, started it. But the Las Vegas Caesars Palace circuit was not as popular among the drivers as Long Beach, primarily because of the flat, repetitive nature of the circuit, its parking-lot location, and Las Vegas itself. It has been described as one of the worst circuits Formula One has ever visited.[5]

The track was laid out in the parking lot of the Caesars Palace hotel and was set up for a temporary circuit. Wide enough for overtaking, it provided ample run-off areas filled with sand and had a surface that was as smooth as glass. Its counter-clockwise direction, however, put a tremendous strain on the drivers' necks. When Nelson Piquet clinched his first World Championship by finishing fifth in 1981, it took him 15 minutes to recover from heat exhaustion after barely making it to the finish. The 1982 race, held in intense heat—another unpleasant feature of this race—was won by Michele Alboreto in a Tyrrell, but that was the end of Formula One racing in Las Vegas, since the races had drawn only tiny crowds (the venue has been described as "an impossibly tight and unedifying circuit that failed to excite drivers or fans"[6]) and the 1981 race made a huge loss for the hotel.

Following the withdrawal of Formula One, the event was assumed by the CART Indy car series for 1983 and 1984. The circuit was modified with turns 1, 6, and 10 connected in a continuous straight, producing a flat 1.125 mi (1.811 km) distorted oval. The two races were contested over 178 laps, a distance of 200.25 mi (322.27 km).[7][8][9] For the 1984 running, the exit of the final corner was widened, increasing lap speeds by around 7 mph from the previous year.[10] Following the 1984 race, the circuit disappeared from the calendar, with the location now covered with urban development (namely, the Forum Shops at Caesars and the Mirage).[11][12]

The first Las Vegas Formula One race since 1982 was the Las Vegas Grand Prix, running on a 3.853 mi (6.201 km)[13] circuit through city streets including Las Vegas Boulevard (the Strip), as part of the 2023 World Championship.[14][6]

Winners of the Caesars Palace Grand Prix

FIA Formula One World Championship history
Year Driver Constructor Location Report
1981 Australia Alan Jones Williams-Ford Caesars Palace, Las Vegas Report
1982 Italy Michele Alboreto Tyrrell-Ford Report
Source:[15]
Can-Am Series history
Year Date Winning driver Car Team
1981 October 16 United States Danny Sullivan[16] Frissbee-Chevrolet Garvin Brown Racing
1982 September 26 United States Danny Sullivan[17] March 827-Chevrolet Newman/Budweiser
CART Indy Car history
Year Date Winning driver Car Team
1983 October 8 United States Mario Andretti Lola-Cosworth Newman/Haas Racing[8]
1984 November 10 United States Tom Sneva March-Cosworth Mayer Motor Racing[9]
Trans-Am Series history
Year Date Winning driver Car Team
1983 October 8 United States Willy T. Ribbs Chevrolet Camaro DeAtley Motorsports[18]
1984 November 11 United States Tom Gloy Mercury Capri Tom Gloy Racing[19]

Lap records

The official race lap records at the Caesars Palace Grand Prix are listed as:

CategoryTimeDriverVehicleDate
Grand Prix Circuit: 3.650 km (1981–1982)
Formula One1:19.639Michele AlboretoTyrrell 0111982 Caesars Palace Grand Prix
Can-Am1:26.025[20]Danny SullivanFrissbee GR21981 Caesars Palace Can-Am round
Modified "Distorted Oval": 1.811 km (1983–1984)[21]
CART32.952Danny SullivanLola T8001984 Caesars Palace Grand Prix
Trans-Am38.000[22]Tom GloyMercury Capri1984 Caesars Palace Trans-Am round
Stock car racing42.580[23]Ron EatonBuick Regal1983 Coors 200

See also

References

  1. ↑ Salmans, Sandra (19 August 1982). "Nissan Promotion (advertising)". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  2. ↑ "The greatest Formula 1 title showdowns - part four". Autosport. 11 July 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  3. ↑ Sylt, Christian (17 October 2014). "F1 plans trip to Las Vegas for grand prix on The Strip". The Independent. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  4. ↑ Wood, Will (18 December 2021). "Which was F1's best down-to-the-wire title fight?". Racefans. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  5. ↑ "Ten worst... F1 tracks". F1 Fanatic. 4 October 2007. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  6. 1 2 Richards, Giles (Nov 12, 2023). "Formula One gambles on Las Vegas spectacular to break US market". The Observer.
  7. ↑ "Caeser's Palace". Champcarstats.com. 8 October 1983. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  8. 1 2 "1983 Caesars Palace Grand Prix III". Champcarstats.com. 8 October 1983. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  9. 1 2 "1984 Caesars Palace Grand Prix IV". Champcarstats.com. 11 November 1984. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  10. ↑ "1983 CART Las Vegas Grand Prix intro". YouTube. 31 May 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2016.
  11. ↑ Henle, Michael (12 July 1992). "Focus: Las Vegas; On a Failed Track, a Roman-Style Mall". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
  12. ↑ Wolford, Steve (18 April 2023). "2023 Formula 1 Las Vegas will be 'much better' than 1980s races". KSNV. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
  13. ↑ "2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix – Event Notes – Circuit Map V3" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 2023-11-17. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  14. ↑ "Las Vegas to host Formula 1 night race from 2023". Formula 1. 30 March 2022. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  15. ↑ "Las Vegas GP". ChicaneF1. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  16. ↑ "Caesars Palace, 16 Oct 1981 « Single-seater Can-Am « OldRacingCars.com".
  17. ↑ "Caesars Palace, 26 Sep 1982 « Single-seater Can-Am « OldRacingCars.com".
  18. ↑ "Trans-Am Caesars Palace 1983". Racing Sports Cars. Archived from the original on 2009-11-18. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  19. ↑ "Trans-Am Caesars Palace 1984". Racing Sports Cars. Archived from the original on 2021-09-14. Retrieved 14 September 2021.
  20. ↑ "Can-Am Challenge Race Caesars Palace, 16 Oct 1981". Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  21. ↑ "Caesers Palace". Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  22. ↑ "Trans-Am Ceasers Palace 1984". Retrieved 24 May 2022.
  23. ↑ "1983 COORS 200". Retrieved 24 May 2022.
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