What the Las Vegas Grand Prix shows us about the future of Formula One

The Formula One calendar is filled with iconic race tracks, many of which are in Europe. Iconic tracks range from the likes of Silverstone and Spa all the way down to Imola and Monza in northern Italy.

However, since Liberty Media’s acquisition of Formula One in 2017, the sport has taken a turn that seeks to help grow the fanbase of the sport as well as establish financial security.

The sport has always been predominantly European, with the most part of the calendar situated in Europe – with the occasional dip into Asia, the Middle East and the Americas.

Since Liberty Media’s acquisition of the sport, the calendar has expanded further into different continents – as well as expanding further in terms of the number of races that were held every year - with the calendar expected to reach a record-breaking 24 races in the next couple of seasons.

From the 2018 calendar onwards, the sport has welcomed both the Losail and a freshly made Jeddah Grand Prix to the sport to help increase the popularity of the sport in the Middle-Eastern countries – which was undoubtedly added because of how much both Losail and Jeddah paid to host the race.

The Jeddah Street circuit was freshly designed for the Formula One calendar – with the track suggesting the way that the sport wants to head in the future. The 27 corner race track is the ‘fastest ever street circuit’ and arguably one of the most dangerous race tracks ever in Formula One.

Each time the sport has raced In Jeddah that has been a vast number of crashes – with the most recent being Mick Schumacher’s 33g shunt into the unpadded concrete barrier.

For the 2022 season the sport has welcomed yet another street circuit to the sport – with this one being in Miami and the second race on the calendar held in the USA. The 19 corner street circuit is again one of the fastest street circuits on the calendar, with winding walls all around creating a very dangerous environment for drivers.

Only a number of days ago Formula One announced yet another circuit that will race around the streets of the United States – which confirmed that the sport is trying to Americanise itself so that it can take advantage of the growing American audience.

The new street circuit, which will take place on the central strip of Las Vegas, has received lots of criticism as the track itself looks quite bland. 14 corners but it seems as if most of the race will take place down the two long straights – with one being 2km long.

The implementation of street circuits in place of iconic race tracks, like Hockenheim, shows us the direction that Formula One wishes to head in.

The sport wants to revolve more around overall top speed and exciting statistics instead of focusing on what really matters - respecting the history of the sport and the quality of racing that millions tune in to see each weekend.

Ultimately, there is a new demographic which has to be catered for if the sport is to grow - but the way that Formula One is going about it is to the disgust of many long time followers of the sport - with many feeling like the prestigious history that they grew up with is being forgotten for one which revolves around money and dodgy human rights records.