John Watson made a bold prediction before the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix about the ‘unwritten guarantee’ that Formula 1 would seek, and could now see it come true.
F1 returned to Sin City after a 41-year hiatus in 2023 for the debut running of the Las Vegas GP. The pinnacle of motorsport had previously raced in Sin City in just 1981 and 1982 when Formula 1 held two editions of the Caesars Palace Grand Prix in car parks outside the hotel.
Watson finished second in the 1982 Caesars Palace GP driving for McLaren to round out the best season of his career with third in the standings. But the first-ever Las Vegas GP in 2023 lacked the glory that the Caesars Palace GP offered as it marked the final round of the term.
Max Verstappen can fulfil John Watson’s prediction for a Las Vegas GP title decider
The inaugural Las Vegas GP marked the penultimate round of the 2023 campaign but F1 had already crowned both champions. Max Verstappen lifted his third drivers’ championship in a row at the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix after Red Bull also won the team’s title at the Japanese GP.
So, Watson predicted F1 would want a Las Vegas title decider before the maiden running as the 2023 race lacked tension. Instead, a drain cover destroying Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari in FP1 dominated the headlines before Verstappen overcame a penalty and won the Las Vegas GP.
READ MORE: Five unforgettable Las Vegas GP moments including Sainz’s drain cover crash
Yet just a year on from Watson’s bold prediction about F1 seeking an ‘unwritten guarantee’ for a title decider at the Las Vegas GP, the Briton could see it come true as Verstappen is on course to win the title again. He is 62 points clear of Lando Norris and must leave 60 ahead.
“Those races in 1981 and 1982 had the advantage of being title deciders. This one doesn’t,” Watson told the Daily Mail ahead of the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix. “It was decided three or four races ago. So, it means the event does not quite have the same spotlight on it.
“They love blood, sweat and tears in America, certainly tears and joy. And if I were Formula 1, I’d have an unwritten guarantee that the world championship is decided in Las Vegas.”
Lando Norris must outscore Max Verstappen by three points to keep the 2024 title fight alive
The odds are heavily stacked in Verstappen’s favour for the Red Bull driver to win his fourth successive title at the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. All the 27-year-old needs to do is finish in front of Norris or lose at most just two points to the McLaren driver after 50 laps in Sin City.
It means that like in 2023, the Las Vegas GP in truth still lacks the suspense of a real drivers’ championship fight – even if the 2024 edition will likely fulfil Watson’s prediction for a title decider. But Norris was always unlikely to usurp the Red Bull racer for his first drivers’ title.
Norris lost too many points to Verstappen during the first five rounds of the campaign with Red Bull dominating at first. The Briton left the Chinese Grand Prix with just 58 points while Verstappen had 110. But Norris has scored 273 points since to the Dutchman’s haul of 283.
So, if the 2024 season started when McLaren introduced their upgrades and Norris became a Grand Prix winner in Miami, Formula 1 would have a real title fight on its hands ahead of the Las Vegas GP. Instead, Verstappen will likely now lift his fourth title with two rounds to spare.
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