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In 1981 and 1982, Las Vegas hosted the last two races of the F1 season. Although the championship had not yet been decided, the nature of the circuit, its location in the city, and the stifling heat of the “gambling capital” caused the Las Vegas Grand Prix to disappear from the calendar, until now.
Formula 1 is set to return to Las Vegas next week, reviving the brief period when the city hosted the Grand Prix in 1981 and 1982. The decision to hold a race in the “gambling capital” was made by Bernie Ecclestone, then former director of the Brabham team and president of FOCA (Formula 1 Constructors' Association), who was at odds with the FIA led by French president Jean-Marie Balestre. After the Concorde Agreement granted FOCA the commercial rights to the sport, Ecclestone, often referred to as “the money man of Formula 1,” pushed to increase team revenues and secure several events in the United States each season.
During the 1980s, the United States hosted Grand Prix races at Watkins Glen (New York), Long Beach (California), Dallas, Detroit, and Las Vegas. The first Las Vegas Grand Prix took place in 1981, serving as the final race of the season.
Las Vegas 1981: the final showdown for the championship As the race in Nevada approached, three drivers were still in contention: Argentina's Carlos Reutemann (49 points), Brazil's Nelson Piquet (48), and France's Jacques Laffite (43). The circuit was set up in the Caesars Palace parking lot, stretching 3.65 km with 14 turns, and the race was scheduled for 75 laps.
On October 17, 1981, Reutemann qualified in pole position, Piquet started fourth, and Laffite twelfth. In scorching heat, 1980 world champion Alan Jones, driving a Williams-Ford, took the first-ever victory in Las Vegas after about an hour and forty-five minutes of racing. Reutemann finished eighth, Piquet fifth, and Laffite sixth. At the time, the points system only rewarded the top six finishers (9-6-4-3-2-1) and did not offer any extra points for the fastest lap. Piquet's fifth-place finish allowed him to edge out Reutemann by a single point and win his first world title. Despite the suspense and Ecclestone's satisfaction, the event was heavily criticized for its improvised layout on a parking lot and the oppressive desert heat. The following year, Las Vegas once again closed out the season, which consisted of 16 races in 1982. The circuit remained unchanged despite the previous year's complaints, and the drivers continued to express their dissatisfaction. Attendance fell to just 30,000 spectators over the weekend, the lowest figure of the entire season.
The 1982 finale was marked by a title battle between Finland's Keke Rosberg (Williams-Ford) and Britain's John Watson (McLaren-Ford). Rosberg had a nine-point lead; if he scored no points and Watson won, the Briton, who had already won in Belgium and Detroit, would win the championship.
The heat dominated the day once again. Rosberg started in sixth position, Watson in ninth, and after 75 laps, Italy's Michele Alboreto took the win in a modest Tyrrell, with Watson finishing second and Rosberg fifth. Rosberg won his only F1 championship, finishing five points ahead of Watson.
Negative reviews of the Las Vegas track meant that the city did not host another Grand Prix for 41 years. The new circuit bears little resemblance to the 1980s version, but temperature will remain an important factor. This time around, the race will take place at night, in much cooler conditions for the 20 drivers on the starting grid.
