2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix restart. Photo: RacePictures.

Las Vegas GP will demand a brutal sacrifice from European fans

18:14, 16 Sep

byNorberto Mujica

The Las Vegas Grand Prix has undergone a start time change that has put European F1 fans in a rather uncomfortable position.

The Las Vegas strip is home to one of the most breath taking sights in all of the F1 calendar. Photo: RacePictures.

The FIA announced the start times and dates for the 2026 season and some changes such as the Canadian Grand Prix suffering a two-hour delay to avoid programming clash with the Indy 500, and the Azerbaijan GP being moved ahead by one day due to a national mourning day, have sparked curiosity.

Nevertheless, the Las Vegas Grand Prix represents the only race weekend to have undergone a sensible time change which puts F1 fans between a rock and a hard place.

The race, since its addition to the F1 calendar in 2023, had been run at midnight local Pacific Standard time. Nevertheless, following conversations with the city to leave a more subtle mark during the series' stay in Sin City, the solution has been found: push the race forward.

Las Vegas GP set for earlier start: European F1 fans on the backfoot

The race is not set for an 08:00PM local start time. With the difference between PST and CET and UK times at 8 and 7 hours respectively, that means fans in Central Europe are due to set their alarm clocks at 4AM if they wish to watch the race live.

For fans in the UK it is an even tougher ask, as they will have to wake up as early as 3AM to witness the very late, and probably very enthralling race around the streets of Las Vegas.

Max Verstappen took home his 4th F1 title on the trot at Las Vegas in 2024. Photo: RacePictures.

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