The stars are out in force for the Vegas Grand Prix, with David Beckham joining a host of famous names arriving trackside for Saturday night’s race.
Beckham hosted a race night party with Shaquille O’Neal and the two arrived in Vegas together about three hours before the race started.
The Inter Miami co-owner and Manchester United football legend was there with his son Cruz – the pair also posed for photos together ahead of their Sports Illustrated party.
Usain Bolt, the fastest man on two legs, was also photographed arriving in Vegas for the penultimate race of the season.
Gordon Ramsay – a huge Formula 1 fan – also arrived at the track early and a few notable influencers were also present.
David Beckham and Shaquille O’Neal pose before their race night party in Las Vegas
Beckham took his son Cruz to Vegas and they got a father-and-son photo
Influencers Veronika Rajek (left) and Alix Earle also took to the track for the race
Usain Bolt, the fastest man on two legs, was also in Vegas to attend the race on Saturday
Gordon Ramsay and his daughter Holly imagined arriving at the race track on the Vegas Strip
Veronika Rajek left little to the imagination in her purple outfit as she braved the track’s cool temperatures of 52 Fahrenheit in the hours leading up to the start.
Alix Earle, the TikTok star who is dating NFL and Miami Dolphins player Braxton Berrios, also shared photos from around the track.
For race organizers, there were huge expectations for Sin City after a difficult few days in the run-up to the showpiece event.
The first practice session was derailed by a loose drain cover on the track, ending the spectacle after just eight minutes when Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari was damaged.
Charles Leclerc, Sainz’s Ferrari teammate, starts the race on pole position on Saturday evening.
Amid race week concerns, ticket sales also disappointed.
Sales on the secondary ticket market for the Las Vegas Grand Prix on Saturday evening soared, but there were plenty of tickets for sale for the Formula 1 race on the Ticketmaster site early in the afternoon.
Race CEO Renee Wilm promised during Formula One Group’s November 3 earnings call that “we will be sold out by the time of the event.” Barring a spike in the eleventh hour, the race will not meet that prediction.
The first-year LVGP – beset by a number of on- and off-track issues that have dampened the enthusiasm of race fans, Las Vegas residents and even drivers – wasted no time in putting tickets on sale for next year. Starting Saturday, fans can make a deposit starting at $250 for the race, which takes place November 21-23, 2024.
When tickets originally went on sale for Saturday’s race about a year ago, the cheapest was $500. Nevada residents were later offered a limited number of tickets starting at $200.
Beckham, Shaq and Jamie Salter – a Canadian billionaire businessman – pose for a photo
The 27-year-old model and influencer Rajek braved the cool temperatures with her outfit
Even though there have been some missteps, the surge in ticket sales on the secondary market also signals strong interest in Saturday night’s race.
Gametime reported early Saturday afternoon that the cheapest ticket cost $1,387, matching the cost of a three-day pass offered Wednesday. The high-end three-day ticket cost $4,613 on Wednesday, and on Saturday the highest single-day ticket was $10,635. Gametime later reported that the lowest price ticket had risen again, this time to $1,613.
TickPick has seen a similar increase. The lowest price ticket went from $771 on Monday to $980 on Friday and $1,128 on Saturday afternoon.
Betting on this race was strong from the start, with BetMGM and Caesars Entertainment projecting all-time highs for a motorsports race. Efforts were unsuccessful Saturday to see if those expectations were met, but if the Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas was any indication, it’s a big weekend for these sports betting companies.