Category: MotorSports

How the Las Vegas Sphere will play a role in the F1 Grand Prix while not confusing drivers

The Sphere will be used A LOT this weekend at the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

There’s so much buzz about The Sphere in Las Vegas after it opened, from the moment it went operational to all the videos inside of it.

And now, it’ll be very present during the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix in 2023. Already, during the opening ceremonies on Wednesday, we saw F1 images show on the Sphere.

So what will be on it during the race? That’s a good question, especially because drivers will be able to see it inside the track. Per Motorsport.com, there’s an agreement in place for the exterior NOT to show red, yellow and blue colors, in case a driver mistakes that for the colors of various instructions from FIA using their flag system (for example, a yellow flag means to slow down).

What you will see, per Fox 5 Vegas, is this:

The Sphere says that on race day itself, Saturday, Nov. 18, content including real-time pole position and a custom podium moment that will celebrate the race’s winner will be displayed on the Exosphere.
“Sphere’s Exosphere doesn’t just complement the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, it elevates it to new heights, turning every lap into a mesmerizing experience for fans in attendance and watching on TV globally,” said Emily Prazer, Chief Commercial Officer for Las Vegas Grand Prix, Inc. “Picture real-time pole positions, thrilling podium celebrations, and a dynamic showcase of all 20 drivers and their iconic cars displayed larger-than-life. We are excited to have Sphere at the heart of race weekend.”

The F1 Las Vegas track has a real chapel you can get married in, because Vegas

Yes, this is real.

The F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix promises to have some Sin City quirks (did you see the card suits on the kerbs?) even if some parts of the actual race may be chaotic.

That includes — I kid you not — an actual chapel at the paddock where you can get married. It’s SO VEGAS. There’s even a little play on the F1 phrase when a race starts: “Lights out and together we go,” which is like the “Lights out and away we go” from David Croft at the beginning of ever race.

I could not love this more. Can’t wait to see if someone actually gets married there:

This nighttime drone shot of Formula 1’s new Las Vegas Grand Prix circuit is so cool

It’s a beautiful circuit that includes part of the Las Vegas Strip.

Formula 1 is making its long-awaited return in the Nevada desert with the Las Vegas Grand Prix this weekend, but while racing fans are eager to see what the new street circuit can offer, things aren’t seamless.

The race is get to begin at 10 p.m. local time, which means 1 a.m. ET, and then, aside from the race being in the middle of the night for much of the U.S., there’s also a potential issue with the general temperatures in the desert in November.

But it’s not all bad! Although Formula 1 formally apologized to the city and people of Las Vegas for the massive disruptions because of the race, the street circuit itself looks pretty cool.

And this nighttime drone shot is even cooler, showing off the course with the Vegas strip and lights in the background:

For the Las Vegas GP, drivers will complete 50 laps around the 6.201-kilometer circuit, which includes parts of the Las Vegas Strip. The 17-turn course will take drivers past iconic venues like Caesars Palace, the Bellagio and the Venetian.

F1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix is set for Sunday, Nov. 19 at 12:55 a.m. ET on ESPN.

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The possible F1 Las Vegas tire issues due to cold Nevada temperatures, explained

We could be in for a chaotic F1 Las Vegas race.

Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Are you wondering why there’s a lot of chatter about the brand-new Formula 1 race in Las Vegas and how there could be tire issues? If so, we’re here to help.

That’s right, we’re only a few days away from the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, a race that promises to look really damn cool as the sport’s drivers zoom around in the dark along the strip.

But there are rumblings about the weather and how it could cause a lot of chaos. Let’s break it all down:

See the first stunning F1 Las Vegas track photos as the 2023 race gets closer

The F1 race in Las Vegas looks like it’s going to be unreal.

Formula 1 is coming to Las Vegas, in what’s one of the more anticipated races in American motorsports since … well, F1 came to Miami last year.

It’s a race that will take Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and the other top drivers through the Vegas strip at night under the lights, which means it’s going to be visually stunning and wild with all the hotels and casinos as the backdrop.

We’ve gotten a first look at the track with some unbelievable photos shared on X (formerly Twitter), so of course we had to put them all in one place. Between this, the Raiders’ stadium and the structure known as The Sphere, there’s so much coolness in Vegas right now:

This is also neat:

Q&A: Ryan Blaney on his first NASCAR title and IndyCar teammate Josef Newgarden getting a tattoo of his face

For The Win chatted with 2023 NASCAR champ Ryan Blaney about his title victory, the celebrations and a tattoo deal among friends.

Ryan Blaney didn’t need to win NASCAR’s season finale on Sunday at Phoenix Raceway to win his first Cup Series championship. And he didn’t. He just needed to finish before his other three title contenders, which he did, becoming a first-time NASCAR champ and delivering back-to-back titles to Team Penske.

From a family of racers, the 29 year old drove his No. 12 Team Penske Ford to a second-place finish at the one-mile desert track, coming up short behind race winner Ross Chastain.

But Blaney went home with the championship trophy and his first title in his eight full-time Cup seasons. He finished the season with three wins, including two checkered flags in the playoffs that helped propel him to the Championship 4 contenders.

For The Win spoke with Blaney on Wednesday about his emotional championship moment, the celebrations and the possibility of Josef Newgarden, his Team Penske teammate on the IndyCar side, getting a tattoo of the champ’s face.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.

NASCAR Cup Series championship start time and starting lineup for Phoenix

See the full starting lineup for Saturday’s NASCAR Cup Series season finale.

A new NASCAR Cup Series will emerge at Phoenix Raceway on Sunday afternoon in the season finale, and four drivers have a chance to make history in the final race of the 2023 playoffs.

Kyle Larson, William Byron, Ryan Blaney and Christopher Bell all survived playoff elimination to advance to the Championship 4. Larson is looking to win his second career title in the last three years, while the other three drivers are vying for their first championship.

Each driver in the Championship 4 will begin Sunday’s race equal on points, and there will be no stage points awarded. Whoever records the best finish will win the title – and Byron has the early advantage, having won the pole for Sunday’s race.

The NASCAR Cup Series championship race will begin at 3:00 p.m. ET on NBC. You can stream the race on Fubo.

Here is the starting lineup for Sunday:

How to watch the 2023 Xfinity Series championship race at Phoenix

All you need to know ahead of Saturday’s Xfinity Series title race.

The 2023 NASCAR Xfinity Series season will come to a close, and one of four drivers will be crowned a champion at Phoenix Raceway.

The Craftsman 150 at Phoenix will begin at 7 p.m. ET on USA Network and NBC Sports App.

Qualifying for the race will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET on USA Network. You can stream both the race and qualifying on Fubo.

Xfinity Series Championship 4

In the final race of the year, four drivers will start the race equal on points and have a chance to win the title. In 2023, those drivers are Sam Mayer, Justin Allgaier, John Hunter Nemechek and Cole Custer.

Nemechek leads all Xfinity Series drivers with seven wins in 2023, while Mayer and Allgaier each have four. Custer has three wins on the year.

In the Spring race at Phoenix, Sammy Smith earned a victory ahead of Ryan Truex and Sheldon Creed. Nemechek was the highest finishing driver among the Championship 4 contenders in sixth, ahead of Mayer in 11th, Custer in 12th and Allgaier in 36th.

NASCAR drivers react to wild, controversial finish in Truck Series championship race

Ben Rhodes won the Craftsman Truck Series championship on Friday in a wild and controversial finish.

The championship-eligible drivers in Friday’s Craftsman Truck Series finale may have set a record for chaos in the playoff era, but Ben Rhodes survived the melee to win his second career title in a wild finish.

Corey Heim appeared to be the class of the field and the fastest driver among the Championship 4, but during his charge toward the front in the final stage, an incident with Hocevar derailed his title plans.

Heim passed Hocevar cleanly to enter provisional championship position, but Hocevar wrecked Heim shortly after, sending him spinning into Stewart Friesen.

Diving low towards the wall, Hocevar washed up the track and into Heim, who was running a middle lane with Friesen to his outside. Though Heim did not suffer major damage, he lost ground on pit road and started well behind his title competitors.

Hocevar appeared to be extremely frustrated with himself after the contact, and the in-car camera showed him shaking his head and pounding the steering wheel afterward. Hocevar developed a reputation early in his career as a somewhat reckless driver who was willing to wreck his competitors, and he has not fully regained the respect of his competitors – just last weekend at Martinsville in the Cup Series, Hocevar appeared to create contact with Ty Gibbs. Tyler Reddick, for one, was not happy with what he saw on Friday night.

The race for the title became a duel between Grant Enfinger and Ben Rhodes, as it became clear that with the damage, Heim’s car didn’t have the pace to compete with the leading cars. Hocevar, who pitted for fresh tires, began climbing up the field – but when he reached Heim with four laps to go and tried to pass on the inside, Heim rode him into the outside wall to exact some level of revenge. By deliberately bringing out a caution, Heim also took the championship out of Enfinger’s grasp, who had a comfortable lead over Rhodes.

On the ensuing restart, Rhodes split Christian Eckes and Zane Smith to try and gain the lead, but Enfinger made contact with Eckes and lost several positions. A spinning car brought out a caution just before the white flag, and Enfinger’s team chose to put under the yellow flag, giving Rhodes a commanding position in the race for the title.

In another twist, Rhodes nearly didn’t survive the overtime restart. Zane Smith appeared to miss a shift entering Turn 1, and Rhodes slammed into the back of his truck, sending Smith spinning. Rhodes suffered major front-end damage, but was able to restart sixth, with Enfinger mired back in 18th.

There was another wreck immediately on the next overtime restart, taking out Rhodes’ teammate Matt Crafton. Rhodes gained positions through the incident to start fourth. Enfinger moved up to 13th and Heim climbed to 19th.

In the end, Enfinger needed one more lap to complete a remarkable run to the title. He surged to within a car-length of Rhodes on the final lap, but the No. 99 was able to hold Enfinger off and finished fifth to win the Truck Series title, as Christian Eckes won the race.

Here’s what NASCAR fans had to say:

How to watch the 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series championship race at Phoenix

All you need to know ahead of Friday night’s Craftsman Truck Series title race.

The 2023 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series season will come to a close, and one of four drivers will be crowned a champion at Phoenix Raceway. If you’re a Truck Series fan on the East Coast, you’re in for a long night.

The Craftsman 150 at Phoenix will begin at 10 p.m. ET on FS1.

Qualifying for the race will begin at 6 p.m. ET on FS1. You can stream both the race and qualifying on Fubo.

Truck Series Championship 4

In the final race of the year, four drivers will start the race equal on points and have a chance to win the title. In 2023, those drivers are Corey Heim, Carson Hocevar, Ben Rhodes and Grant Enfinger.

Hocevar leads all Truck Series drivers with four wins in 2023, while Heim and Enfinger each had three. Rhodes, who has only one victory this season, secured his spot in the final four on points with back-to-back runner-up finishes at Talladega and Homestead.

Unlike the Cup Series and Xfinity Series, the Truck Series did not race at Phoenix in March earlier this year. In last season’s finale at Phoenix, Rhodes had the highest finish among 2023’s Championship 4 in second place. Enfinger finished sixth, ahead of Heim in seventh and Hocevar in 10th.