Formula 1 arrived in Las Vegas with both championship crowns secured, but plenty of unfinished business at the sharp end of the grid. As championship entered its final three rounds, the leading teams were more closely matched than at any other point in the campaign, setting up a compelling contest beneath the Strip’s neon skyline. The titles may have been decided, but with race victories still fiercely contested, there was little reason to expect anyone to ease off.
The Las Vegas Strip Circuit also hosted the opening round of the season-ending triple header, launching a demanding run that would take the paddock from Nevada to Qatar and then Abu Dhabi over the following fortnight. For the teams and drivers, these next three races would be a fight for the final pecking order in both championships.
Race Guide
Season: 2026 F1 World Championship
Race date: Saturday, 21 November 2026
Race start time: 20:00 local time (PST, UTC−8)
Circuit: Las Vegas Strip Circuit
Laps: 50
Circuit length: 6.201km
2025 winner: Max Verstappen
Previous race: 2026 Sao Paulo Grand Prix
Next race: 2026 Qatar Grand Prix
| Pole position | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | TBC | TBC | |
| Time | TBC | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | TBC | TBC | |
| Time | TBC | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | TBC | TBC | |
| Second | TBC | TBC | |
| Third | TBC | TBC | |
Weekend Schedule
| Date | Session | Local Time |
|---|---|---|
| 19 November 2026 | Free Practice 1 (FP1) | 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm local time |
| 19 November 2026 | Free Practice 2 (FP2) | 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm local time |
| 20 November 2026 | Free Practice 3 (FP3) | 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm local time |
| 20 November 2026 | Qualifying | 8:00 pm – 9:00 pm local time |
| 21 November 2026 | Race | 8:00 pm local time |
Las Vegas Strip Circuit Stats & Facts
The Las Vegas Strip Circuit put Formula 1 in the middle of one of the world’s most recognisable skylines, but its appeal extended well beyond the scenery. Stretching 3.8 miles through Paradise, Nevada, the 17-corner street track combined tight turns with long stretches of full-throttle running. Bringing Grand Prix racing to the Strip had been one of F1’s most ambitious undertakings, and the resulting circuit made outright speed as much a headline attraction as the hotels and casinos surrounding it.
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The signature section was the 1.2-mile blast down the Strip, which took the cars past landmarks including the Venetian, the Bellagio Fountains and the Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas. That straight gave drivers a significant opportunity to attack, while leaving the leader vulnerable to a pursuing car. Across its first three editions, the modern Las Vegas Grand Prix had produced plenty of overtaking, giving the event a sporting identity to accompany its spectacular setting.
The numbers underlined just how fast the circuit was. George Russell averaged approximately 150mph on his dry-weather pole lap in 2024, putting Las Vegas second only to Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah Corniche Circuit among F1’s street tracks. With qualifying held in wet conditions in 2025, Russell’s earlier lap provided the more useful illustration of the layout’s dry-weather pace.
Heading into the 2026 weekend, Max Verstappen had been the most successful driver on the current circuit, winning the inaugural race in 2023 and returning to the top step in 2025. Both victories had come from second on the grid, giving Red Bull two wins from the opening three races. Russell had claimed the other victory for Mercedes in 2024 and remained the only driver to have converted pole position into a Las Vegas Strip Circuit win.
Those three races had also delivered very different winning margins. Verstappen finished just 2.070 seconds clear in 2023, Russell won by 7.313 seconds in 2024, and Verstappen’s advantage stretched to 23.546 seconds in 2025. The variation demonstrated that Vegas could produce both a close fight and a commanding victory; its long straights created opportunities, but they had not guaranteed a tight finish.
The current event had begun in 2023, although the city’s Formula 1 history reached back more than four decades. Las Vegas had previously hosted the Caesars Palace Grand Prix in 1981 and 1982 on a separate circuit. The Strip layout represented a new chapter in the city’s relationship with F1, with the 2026 race marking its fourth appearance on the modern calendar.
Championship background
Mercedes arrive in Las Vegas with the championship double secured, having wrapped up the Constructors’ Championship at the São Paulo Grand Prix just a week after Kimi Antonelli became Formula 1’s youngest world champion in Mexico City. Yet their recent results told a different story from the season’s overall standings. The team that set the standard across the campaign was now facing its toughest spell, with rivals increasingly finding the pace to beat it.
Lando Norris delivered that latest evidence in Brazil, taking his third victory of the season for McLaren. Ferrari also showed race-winning potential in Mexico, where a first-lap collision between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc potentially cost the team a 1-2 finish. Mercedes had already banked the biggest prizes, but the closing rounds of the 2026 F1 World Championship were becoming a much less predictable contest.
There was still plenty at stake behind Antonelli in the Drivers’ Championship. Eight consecutive podium finishes had carried Max Verstappen into a stronger position in the fight for runner-up honours, with the Red Bull driver now 17 points ahead of George Russell. Hamilton sat just one point behind Russell, leaving three drivers closely involved in a battle where a single difficult weekend could change the order.
The Constructors’ Championship had its own unfinished business. Red Bull held a 17-point advantage over McLaren in the contest for third, while Haas led Audi by only three points in the fight for seventh. Those margins gave the Las Vegas weekend consequences well beyond the podium on F1’s fourth visit to the Strip since its 2023 return.
Race entries
The major driver change was announced on 3 November 2026, when Haas confirmed Esteban Ocon would not race for the team again in 2026. His repalcement is still to be confrimed at this race.
The lineup of drivers and teams remained the same as the 2026 season’s entry list, featuring no reserve drivers for the race.
Tyre choices
More to follow…
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Free Practice
More to follow…
Free Practice 1 Classification
2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix FP1, 19 November 2026
Results to follow…
Free Practice 2 Classification
2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix FP2, 19 November 2026
Results to follow…
Free Practice 3 Classification
2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix FP3, 20 November 2026
Results to follow…
Qualifying
Full report post-session.
Qualifying Classification
2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix Qualifying, 20 November 2026
Results to follow…
What happened in the 2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix?
More to follow…
2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix race results
The 2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix Race was held on 21 November 2026 at 8:00 pm local time.
Results to follow…
2026 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings
Championship standings for Drivers’ and Teams after the 2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix.
2026 Post-Race F1 Drivers’ Championship Standings
Results to follow…
2026 Post-Race F1 Constructors’ Championship Standings
Results to follow…
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