F1 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix LIVE: Race start time, schedule, grid and stream as Russell starts on pole – UK Times

Pit lane. Franco Colapinto**

*Bottas has a five-place grid penalty for taking a new engine

**Colapinto will start from the pit lane after his crash in qualifying

• George Russell – 9/4
• Carlos Sainz – 5/2
• Charles Leclerc – 13/5
• Max Verstappen – 6/1
• Lando Norris – 8/1
• Oscar Piastri – 22/1
• Lewis Hamilton – 22/1
• Pierre Gasly – 125/1
• Yuki Tsunoda – 275/1

There are now just 86 points available across the next three races in Vegas, Qatar (including the final sprint race of the season) and Abu Dhabi.

By the end of the weekend in Vegas, there will be just 60 points left to claim.

That means that if Verstappen simply finishes above Norris in Vegas, he will be crowned the 2024 champion. The Dutchman would also seal the title if both drivers fail to score a point.

Verstappen will also win the 2024 title if Norris does not outscore the Red Bull driver by more than two points.

As a result, Verstappen will be world champion in Sin City if:

• If Norris is second and he finishes third with the fastest lap
• If Norris is third and he finishes fourth with the fastest lap
• If Norris is fourth without the fastest lap and he finishes fifth
• If Norris is fifth without the fastest lap and he finishes sixth
• If Norris is sixth without the fastest lap and he finishes seventh
• If Norris is seventh without the fastest lap and he finishes eighth
• If Norris is eighth without the fastest lap and he finishes ninth
• If Norris is ninth without the fastest lap or lower irrespective of where he he finishes

“Sergio has been a long way off for a long time now. I don’t know anyone who has had so many opportunities in this sport at a big team.

“I’d love to see Yuki get in the car. He’s so chilled and confident.”

As fans trudged away from their expensive acquired seats on night one of the 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix, having seen just eight minutes of cars on track before “manhole gate”, one question sprung to mind: how could the sport come back for this?

Yet beyond all the fanfare which inevitably accompanied Formula One’s lavish return to Sin City last year, what actually saved the inaugural event was the Saturday night race itself. We had overtakes – 82 in fact, the most of any circuit during its debut grand prix – we had safety cars and we had last-lap drama. For a sport which veers too blatantly in the direction of spectacle at times, it was a refreshing nod to the drama the action on track can deliver.

Michael Buffer and his brother Bruce will join forces to introduce Formula One’s stars for Saturday’s celebrity-fuelled Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Michael, famous for his ‘Let’s Get Ready to Rumble’ phrase, was hired by F1 bosses ahead of the US Grand Prix in Austin in 2017.

Bruce, known for yelling ‘It’s Time’, announced the grid’s drivers prior to last year’s event on the Strip.

1. Max Verstappen – 393 points

2. Lando Norris – 331 points

3. Charles Leclerc – 307 points

4. Oscar Piastri – 262 points

5. Carlos Sainz – 244 points

6. George Russell – 192 points

7. Lewis Hamilton – 190 points

8. Sergio Perez – 151 points

9. Fernando Alonso – 62 points

10. Nico Hulkenberg – 31 points

11. Yuki Tsunoda – 28 points

12. Pierre Gasly – 26 points

13. Lance Stroll – 24 points

14. Esteban Ocon – 23 points

15. Kevin Magnussen – 14 points

16. Alex Albon – 12 points

17. Daniel Ricciardo – 12 points

18. Ollie Bearman – 7 points

19. Franco Colapinto – 5 points

20. Liam Lawson – 4 points

21. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points

22. Logan Sargeant – 0 points

23. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points

Hamilton will start only 10th in Sin City on Saturday night after he made mistakes on each of his flying laps. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz qualified second, with Pierre Gasly a surprise third for Alpine.

British driver Lando Norris must outscore Max Verstappen by three points to extend the title battle to the penultimate race in Qatar, but the McLaren driver will start one place behind the Dutchman in sixth.

Brundle, who is the main co-commentator alongside Damon Hill and is known for his famous grid walks, thanked 64-year-old Hill for their years spent working together and “decades of friendship” – before adding there was “much more to come.”

“Damon I’ve had the pleasure and privilege of both racing against you and commentating on you in F1, working alongside you on SkyF1, and decades of friendship,” Brundle said on X.

“It’s been a blast, with much more to come. MB.”