Las Vegas in one-year bid to match Singapore's 14-year journey

F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix officials are hoping to crack in year one what it has taken bosses of the race in Singapore 14 years to achieve.

The race at the Marina Bay Street Circuit returned to the F1 calendar in September after a three-year absence and proved, as the sport's original night race, that it has not lost any of its lustre or appeal over time.

But in terms of its iconic night-time status, the Far East venue faces stiff competition from Las Vegas that returns to the sport next season after a 41-year absence.

The city held a spectacular launch party on Saturday night to celebrate the fact it is a year to go to an event that has fast become one of the most eagerly anticipated in the sport's history.

With F1 promoting the event and selling tickets, the pressure is on to deliver, and with the iconic Strip playing its part as it will form a key section of the circuit.

“The reality is this is all very new, and the fact we are doing it on probably one of the busiest roads in America means we can’t take that lightly,” said chief commercial officer Emily Prazer in an interview with this writer for an article for The New York Times.

“So we have been speaking with other promoters, particularly Singapore, about how they’ve done their event, which is phenomenal.

"But they’ve had 14 years to get there. We want to deliver in year one what they delivered in year 14.”

F1 to "deliver something unique" - Domenicali

Surprisingly, F1 has only signed a three-year deal with the Las Vegas authorities to stage the race, even though it spent $240million in May this year on a 39-acre plot to the east of the Strip to build a pit, paddock and hospitality complex.

F1 CEO and president Stefano Domenicali feels it is important the sport proves itself first before signing up for the long term.

“A three-year deal was done to respect the fact the Las Vegas community does not yet completely understand the project, and for us to prove we can deliver something unique,” said Domenicali.

“The fact we are investing so much money is a sign to show them we do believe in this project and that it will be beneficial to everyone in the long term.”

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