The opening ceremony reflects one of many ways that the traditional hallmarks of a grand prix weekend are being altered to make the second take on a Las Vegas Grand Prix the most spectacular event it can be. An openly contemptuous Max Verstappen was almost unhappy enough with the ceremony to make that an apt comparison the 2023 world champion said that "they still make money whether I like it or not, so it's not up to me." A Mercedes AMG F1 social media account likened the ceremony to the introductions at the Hunger Games, a fictional event from the Hunger Games franchise where children are forced to murder each other as penance for their territories rebelling 70 years earlier. Drivers spent the evening waiting to be lifted up onto the top of moving stages, then quickly lowered back down again after waving to the crowd. It all started on Wednesday night with an opening ceremony broadcast. All of that is on display in Las Vegas, where everything is sacrificed at the altar of spectacle. There is racing, sure, but the "high speed world of Formula 1" is about the image that develops around it as much as it is about the competition. Its vision of F1 is one of glamorous world travel, celebrities wandering the pre-race grid aimlessly while Martin Brundle berates them, and an escalating series of VIP experiences looking down on the level of VIP just below them. ![]() Liberty Media, the owners of Formula 1, knows what it's selling.
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