America Twice at a disadvantage, but Max Verstappen successfully came back to finish first and help Red Bull win the 20th round of F1 2023.
On Wednesday night, Versappen complained that the Las Vegas Grand Prix was “99% a spectacle” due to too many side events. But the reality was that the race on the streets of the “City of Entertainment” turned out to be one of the most exciting races to watch, with the Dutch star front and center despite the early noise about his collision with a manhole cover and complaints from spectators about the price of tickets.
Verstappen was penalised five seconds for forcing Ferrari rival Charles Leclerc off the track at the first corner on the start. He also damaged his front wing in a collision with Mercedes rival George Russell, and spent one more pit stop than Leclerc before falling behind. But the RB10’s consistent pace over the long distances, combined with the defending champion’s skill and tenacity, allowed Verstappen to gradually gain the upper hand. He overtook Leclerc again with 13 laps to go, and went on to win his record-breaking 18th season.
Verstappen celebrates his victory in the RB10. Photo: Red Bull Racing
Leclerc had the lead in the Las Vegas night race, but had been beaten to pole by Verstappen in previous attempts. The rivalry between the pair set the tone for the November 19 race from the very start, with Verstappen getting the better of Leclerc, coming from second and charging into the SF23 at the entrance to Turn 1.
The Dutchman was forced to go wide at the exit of Turn 1, forcing Leclerc to the side of the track. Verstappen’s actions were reminiscent of his controversial actions against Lewis Hamilton in the fierce 2021 race. This time, the Dutchman explained that the RB19 had the upper hand in the corner because it had the apex first. However, after careful video review, the officials decided to add a 5-second penalty to Verstappen.
"I didn't mean to force Charles off the track, but I couldn't slow down. Looking back, that penalty was probably correct," Verstappen explained after finishing.
On the track, after the controversial situation, Leclerc waited for Verstappen to return the lead. But Red Bull still let Versappen keep this position and only served the penalty when he came in to change tires. However, Ferrari soon regained the lead. Versappen struggled on the medium tires and could not widen the gap with Leclerc. From lap 10, the gap between the two drivers gradually narrowed from the maximum 3 seconds created by the Dutch star. By lap 16, when Red Bull called Verstappen to the pits for the next lap, Leclerc was able to attack, passing his opponent at the end of the Vegas Strip straight.
Leclerc regained the lead, just ahead of the other Red Bull driver, Sergio Perez. The Monaco driver continued on the starting tires for another five laps. When Leclerc pitted on lap 21, Perez took the lead. A lap 25 collision between Russell and Verstappen at Turn 12 prompted the safety car to be deployed to clear debris from the track.
The collision looked to be a huge blow for Verstappen as the RB19 had to pit for a front wing replacement. However, the safety car prevented the Dutchman from falling behind. The timely arrival of the safety car also hampered Leclerc, as he suddenly had another tough competitor in Perez.
Verstappen's RB10 on the F1 Grand Prix Las Vegas track on November 19. Photo: AFP
The Mexican driver started only 11th and then dropped to the back of the pack, when he was involved in a collision in the middle group at Turn 1 on the start. The collision forced Perez to pit for a new wing. But then the first safety car at the start of the race after McLaren driver Lando Norris's accident helped the Red Bull driver to decide not to pit at that time.
Perez took advantage of the second safety car after the collision between Russell and Verstappen to immediately pit for tires. Leclerc, who had only changed tires five laps earlier, decided to stay on the track. After the tires were changed, Perez and Verstappen dropped to second and fifth. While Perez was behind Leclerc, Verstappen was behind Pierre Gasly (Alpine) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren).
When the safety car withdrew for the restart, Leclerc tried to defend against Perez, despite having a five-lap tire lead. However, the Ferrari driver only held the lead for three laps before Perez closed in and attacked and overtook. Having dropped to second, Leclerc remained close and overtook again on lap 34 with a stunning late braking at the end of the Strip straight.
Down below, while Leclerc and Perez were battling it out, Verstappen quickly took care of Gasly and Piastri to stay close to the two leading cars. On lap 36, the Red Bull No. 1 easily passed his teammate on the Strip straight and approached the Ferrari car. Leclerc tried his best to fight back, but still could not defend against his formidable opponent with the help of the DRS wing. On lap 37, Leclerc was passed by Verstappen at Turn 14.
Perez also followed and attacked Leclerc and regained second place, giving Red Bull hope of a double victory. But Leclerc did not give up. He tried to stay close to Perez and put a lot of pressure on his rival. With only about 2 laps left in the race, Red Bull even had to ask Verstappen to gradually slow down so that Perez could close the gap to less than 1 second so that he could use his DRS wing to defend.
However, it was too late for Perez to hold on. As the race entered the final lap, Leclerc stayed in the wind and waited for the long straight of the Strip to attack his rival. The Ferrari driver's efforts paid off as he beat his rival to take second place at Turn 14, just three corners before the finish. For the second consecutive race, Perez lost a position when his rival passed him on the final lap, adding to the Mexican's uncertainty over his future at Red Bull.
Leclerc (red car) and Verstappen race at a corner at the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 19. Photo: AFP
After the race, Leclerc admitted that he did not pit mid-race during the safety car because he was not sure what his rivals would choose. "We were a little unlucky with that choice. I am still very happy with the race even though we did not win," said the Ferrari driver.
Having been a vocal critic of the F1 race in Las Vegas, Verstappen surprisingly praised the race after winning. "It was very exciting. The DRS helped a lot and made the race exciting. The road surface turned out to help us accelerate to the maximum, without being afraid. I hope the fans enjoyed it and are excited to come back here next year to continue to expect an exciting race."
In contrast to the excitement of Ferrari and Red Bull, Mercedes continued to have a sad race when their two drivers were ranked 7th and 8th. Hamilton officially lost the chance to finish second in the individual points table. Mercedes is now only 4 points ahead of Ferrari in the race for second place in the constructors' standings.
Russell was demoted four places after finishing with a five-second penalty following a collision with Verstappen. Hamilton was unlucky when he collided with Osar Piastri on lap 16, resulting in a puncture and costing him nearly 20 seconds, having to run almost a lap with the flat tire. The Briton only found out about the puncture after passing the pit lane. The incident forced Hamilton to abandon his one-stop strategy and switch to a two-stop strategy.
Las Vegas Grand Prix Results
Rank on one's own | Racer | Team | Location departure | Number of tire changes | Fastest individual lap | Achievements | Point |
1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 2 | 2 | 1 minute 35.614 seconds | 1 hour 29 minutes 8.289 seconds | 25 |
2 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1 | 1 | 1:35,669 | +2,070 seconds | 18 |
3 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 11 | 2 | 1:35,939 | +2,241 | 15 |
4 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 16 | 1 | 1:36,637 | +18,665 | 12 |
5 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 19 | 2 | 1:36,584 | +20,067 | 10 |
6 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 12 | 2 | 1:35,984 | +20,834 | 8 |
7 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 10 | 2 | 1:35,716 | +21,755 | 6 |
8 | George Russell (*) | Mercedes | 3 | 2 | 1:36,071 | +23,091 | 4 |
9 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 9 | 2 | 1:36,559 | +25,964 | 2 |
10 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 18 | 2 | 1:35,940 | +29,496 | 2 |
11 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 4 | 1 | 1:36,913 | +34,270 | |
12 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 5 | 1 | 1:37,357 | +43,398 | |
13 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 8 | 2 | 1:37,455 | +44,825 | |
14 | Daniel Ricciardo | AlphaTauri | 14 | 1 | 1:37,108 | +48,525 | |
15 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | 17 | 1 | 1:37,375 | +50,162 | |
16 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | 6 | 1 | 1:37,740 | +50,882 | |
17 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | 7 | 2 | 1:37,562 | +85,350 | |
18 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 20 | 2 | 1:37,587 | Abandon the race | |
19 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 13 | 2 | 1:37,565 | Abandon the race | |
20 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 15 | 1:59,327 | Abandon the race |
+) Fastest-lap: 1 minute 35.490 seconds set by Oscar Piastri (McLaren) on lap 47.
(*) Russell finished 4th but had 5 seconds added to his overall time due to a collision with Max Verstappen.
Personal scorecard after 21 stages
Rank on one's own | Racer | Team | Point |
1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 549 |
2 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | 273 |
3 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 232 |
4 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 200 |
5 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 195 |
6 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 200 |
7 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 188 |
8 | George Russell | Mercedes | 160 |
9 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 89 |
10 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 73 |
11 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 62 |
12 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | 58 |
13 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 27 |
14 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | 13 |
15 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | 10 |
16 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | 9 |
17 | Daniel Ricciardo | AlphaTauri | 6 |
18 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | 6 |
19 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 3 |
20 | Liam Lawson | AlphaTauri | 2 |
21 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | 1 |
22 | Nyck de Vries | AlphaTauri |
Team scoreboard after 21 races
Rank on one's own | Team | Point |
1 | Red Bull | 822 |
2 | Mercedes | 392 |
3 | Ferrari | 388 |
4 | McLaren | 284 |
5 | Aston Martin | 273 |
6 | Alpine | 120 |
7 | Williams | 28 |
8 | AlphaTauri | 21 |
9 | Alfa Romeo | 16 |
10 | Haas | 12 |
Minh Phuong
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