F1 Las Vegas GP LIVE: Qualifying start time and schedule as Lewis Hamilton eyes pole position

As fans trudged away from their expensive acquired seats on night one of the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix, having seen just eight minutes of cars on track before “manhole gate”, one question sprung to mind: how could the sport come back for this?

Yet beyond all the fanfare which inevitably accompanied Formula One’s lavish return to Sin City last year, what actually saved the inaugural event was the Saturday night race itself. We had overtakes – 82 in fact, the most of any circuit during its debut grand prix – we had safety cars and we had last-lap drama. For a sport which veers too blatantly in the direction of spectacle at times, it was a refreshing nod to the drama the action on track can deliver.

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Lando Norris insists Max Verstappen would not have won this year’s Formula 1 world championship if he was driving a McLaren.

Norris saw his title hopes disintegrate at the last race in Brazil when Verstappen produced one of his best-ever drives to claim victory from 17th on the grid in wet conditions.

With 62 points separating the pair with three races to go, Red Bull’s Verstappen will win his fourth consecutive F1 title if he finishes above McLaren’s Norris at this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.

“We’ve got to try and find something to try and turn the situation around, but we’re not so far [away],” Leclerc said.

“All in all I think we are very strong in race pace, a bit less in quali. It’s been a bit the story of our season but it’s better that way than the opposite.

“I think we have some ideas of what to do to try and improve that, but then it’s a compromise of how good you want to be in the race compared to qualifying and we need to find the right compromise.”

Formula One is reportedly in talks with General Motors about an 11th team joining the grid in 2026.

F1 rejected Andretti’s bid in partnership with GM earlier this year, but did say a new offer for 2028 would be considered.

Yet Sky Sports News understands that, with former boss Michael Andretti out of the picture, a GM entry led by businessman Dan Towriss - the majority shareholder of Andretti Global - is being considered for an entry into the sport as early as 2026.

“I think we are dirty track champions. FP1 is always great and then the moment the grip kicks in, we’ve seen that the performances deteriorate.

“Having said that, I think the gap was pretty big. It’s the biggest that we’ve seen so far in FP1, so we’ve got to spray some dust for all the sessions tomorrow, in qualifying or something.

“But I don’t believe this kind of advantage to the other teams is going to last. I would very much hope that we’re not falling behind like we did in the past on some of the tracks, but remain competitive, fight in the front.”

“It was slippery. We really struggled to switch the tyres on, especially over one lap. On the long runs we were a bit more competitive, but we still need to do some fine tuning.”

The championship leader added: “We’re far off the one-lap pace because of the unique conditions here, but it’s the same for everyone. We have to learn what we’re doing wrong. It’s like driving on ice.”

Hollywood stars Brad Pitt and Sylvester Stallone, rapper Snoop Dogg, British chef Gordon Ramsay, Olympic great Michael Phelps, heiress and celebrity television star Paris Hilton, and model E

are among the plethora of stars expected to attend the race against the backdrop of Caesars Palace, the MGM Grand and Bellagio hotels.

Michael Buffer and his brother Bruce will join forces to introduce Formula One’s stars for Saturday’s celebrity-fuelled Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Michael, famous for his ‘Let’s Get Ready to Rumble’ phrase, was hired by F1 bosses ahead of the US Grand Prix in Austin in 2017.

Bruce, known for yelling ‘It’s Time’, announced the grid’s drivers prior to last year’s event on the Strip.

“We’re here that if there’s points to pick up, we’re here to do it. We’re coming here to still fight for our adversaries.”

On team’s determination to get two cars out on track: “It’s just Williams. We can see the pathway of where we were and where we’re going at the moment.”