Risk of rain in qualifying will increase challenge of cold Vegas temperatures

The inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix is already a unique round of the 2023 Formula 1 world championship for many reasons. Not only is it the only brand new event on the calendar, it will unusually be held on a Saturday rather than the traditional Sunday.

Unlike most night races on the calendar, every one of the five track sessions for this weekend’s event in Vegas will take place after the sun has set. And given Nevada’s climate in November, drivers will be facing very cool conditions throughout the three-day event.

On Thursday evening, during the opening practice session, ambient temperatures are expected to be at 15 degrees Celsius at their highest as drivers are let loose onto the Las Vegas Strip Circuit for the very first time.

By the time they head out for the second session at the stroke of midnight on Friday morning, it should be even cooler. Lando Norris even joked the drivers may need hand-warmers.

At least teams can expect to enjoy dry running during the opening practice sessions with only a very low risk of rain predicted for Thursday. However, for Friday’s final practice session and qualifying at midnight on Saturday morning, there is currently a 40% risk of rain adding an extra element of challenge to what will already be one of the most difficult qualifying hours of the season.

That risk will remain on Saturday evening for the grand prix itself as a “moderate” chance of showers threaten to dampen the pre-race festivities. However, that risk looks likely to subside as the evening progresses, with current models suggesting there should be only a 20% chance of a wet start to the first ever Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

Even if it stays completely dry for this new event, the nighttime conditions should make this the coolest grand prix of the season with a top of 12 degrees ambient temperature expected. That would make it cooler than both the Austrian and Dutch Grands Prix – both of which dropped to a low of 16 degrees.

Should the expected race start conditions come to pass, it will be the coolest grand prix held since the 2022 Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola, which was just 12 degrees as the race began in the wet. There have been colder races than that in recent years, but only by a few degrees.

The track surface temperatures may drop even lower after several hours of darkness. As a result, Pirelli has prescribed unusually high minimum tyre pressures even by F1’s standards. Front tyres must be set at 27psi, rears 24.5.

Pirelli said the low ambient and track temperatures will mean the tyres’ operating pressures remain comparable to that seen at other races held in more typical conditions.

“In cold conditions, the gap between cold tyre pressures and normal running pressures is greatly reduced – so when the car is moving, tyre pressure will increase a lot less than on other circuits due to the low asphalt temperatures,” said Pirelli’s head of motorsport Mario Isola. “As a result, we think that running pressures will still be lower than on other circuits that are tough on tyres, such as Baku for example.”

Advert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free

For more updates on the track conditions during each session keep an eye on RaceFans Live and the RaceFans Twitter account.

2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix

• Tost blames track inspection oversight for Sainz’s damage in Las Vegas
• Hard to repeat “rare” combination of factors behind Vegas shunt – Norris
• Las Vegas Grand Prix “got a lot more hate than it deserved” – Sargeant
• Williams’ “incredible” Vegas qualifying made us “poor” in race – Vowles
• Piastri is first rookie to take two fastest laps in a season since Hamilton