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Toto Wolff had already feared it after the first free practice session: “We are world champions when the track is dirty. The first practice session is always great. But then the grip comes, and that’s when our performance usually drops.”
Mercedes dominated the start of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix on Thursday evening, almost a second ahead of the rest of the world. In the second training session, on Friday night, with the outside temperature now only around ten degrees, the balance of power normalized and the big Mercedes advantage was gone.
It was still enough for the fastest time: Lewis Hamilton mastered the street circuit on the legendary Strip in 1:33.825 minutes, relegating Lando Norris (McLaren/+0.011) and his teammate George Russell (+0.190) to second and third place.
Behind them were the two Ferraris in P4/5, 0.280 (Carlos Sainz) and 0.488 seconds behind (Charles Leclerc). Ahead of Pierre Gasly (Alpine/+0.826), Kevin Magnussen (Haas/+0.861) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren/+0.973).
Nico Hülkenberg was slower than his teammate in both sessions on Thursday. However, he finished in a solid ninth place in the second training session, 0.993 seconds behind the best time, 0.132 seconds behind Magnussen and 0.179 seconds ahead of Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls), who rounded out the top 10.
On the subject:
Result, 2nd free practice
Ticker: Paddock live with Norman Fischer
Stream: Analysis live on YouTube (12:00 p.m.)
The result of Max Verstappen (Red Bull), who could score his first World Cup match point in Las Vegas if he scores a maximum of two points less than Norris, was surprisingly bad. Verstappen had taken fifth place in FT1, but fell back to 17th place in FT2. Gap to the top: 2.009 seconds.
After 37 minutes of the second free practice session there was the first red flag of the race weekend. Alexander Albon parked his Williams at turn 6. The Thai had only completed four laps by then because his mechanics had previously identified a problem with the fuel system.
However, this had not yet been resolved when Albon resumed his training program: “The team tried to repair Alex’s fuel system and drive in the remaining time of the second practice session. But the problem persisted, which is why the car was parked on the track “We will examine this carefully after the session.”
Where can you watch the Las Vegas Grand Prix live?
Didn’t have time to watch Formula 1 this early in the morning? No problem: Every evening (local time) there is a detailed analysis of the day on the Formula1.de YouTube channel, with Kevin Scheuren and Ruben Zimmermann live from Las Vegas. By the way, not just on YouTube: the live streams of the F1 show are now available also on Twitch to see.
It goes up on Friday Thursday analysis at 12:00 p.m. German time (CET), and this time the focus of the F1 show is the interpretation of the long runs with Kevin Hermann, powered by PACETEQ, as well as the presentation of the teams’ technical updates, presented by Stefan Ehlen.
If you really want to see qualifying and the race in Las Vegas live, you will have to be prepared for unusual broadcast times this weekend. The qualifying begins, according to Las Vegas time, on Friday evening at 10 p.m., i.e. at 7 a.m. on Saturday morning according to German time. The same applies to the race: Start in Las Vegas on Saturday at 10 p.m. or on Sunday morning at 7 a.m. according to CET time.
Las Vegas is one of the seven Grands Prix that are also shown on free TV in Germany. RTL broadcasts live on Saturday from 6:30 a.m. and on Sunday from 6:00 a.m. CET. The entire race weekend with all sessions can also be seen on the pay-TV provider Sky. (Click here for the complete TV overview for Formula 1 in Las Vegas 2024!)
* **Given Mercedes’ performance fluctuation throughout qualifying, is it more likely that the team can adapt their car to the track conditions during the race, or will they continue to struggle to maintain consistency?**
## The Las Vegas Grand Prix: Analyzing the Qualifying Results
**Introduction:**
Welcome to World Today News! Today we have a special segment dissecting the thrilling Qualifying results from the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Joining us are two Formula One experts, [Expert 1 Name] and [Expert 2 Name].
**Section 1: The Rise and Fall of Mercedes**
* Toto Wolff expressed concerns about Mercedes’ performance once grip levels increased. We saw Mercedes dominating the first practice session, but then their advantage shrunk significantly.
* **Question for Experts:** What factors might have contributed to this change in performance? Was it track evolution, tyre management, or something else entirely?
**Section 2: Hamilton on Pole, but Verstappen Struggling**
* Lewis Hamilton claimed pole position, narrowly beating out Lando Norris. Max Verstappen, however, shockingly finished in 17th place.
* **Question for Experts:**
is this a one-off hiccup for Verstappen, or is there a deeper problem with Red Bull’s setup in Las Vegas?
* **Question for Experts:** Will other teams be able to capitalize on Verstappen’s struggles, and if so, who poses the biggest threat?
**Section 3: The Midfield Battle Heats Up**
* The midfield battle looks incredibly tight, with Ferrari, McLaren, and Alpine all vying for important points.
* **Question for Experts:** Which midfield team impressed you the most during qualifying, and who do you see punching above their weight in the race?
**Section 4: Albon’s Early Exit**
* Alexander Albon’s qualifying session was cut short by a fuel system issue.
* **Question for Experts:** How significant is this setback for Williams? Can Albon recover from this during Sunday’s race?
**Section 5: Looking Ahead: Race Day Predictions**
* Given these qualifying results, what are your predictions for Sunday’s race?
* **Question for Experts:** Will Hamilton maintain his lead, or will we see a comeback from other drivers, like Verstappen?
* **Question for Experts:** What are the crucial factors that will likely decide the outcome of this race, considering the unique aspects of the Las Vegas track?
**Conclusion**
Thank you to both our experts for their insightful analysis. The Las Vegas Grand Prix is shaping up to be a thrilling event, and we can’t wait to see how the race unfolds.
