Race Highlights | 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix

It is showtime! Our Saturday night fight is five lights away and Formula One goes racing on the streets of Las Vegas with Charles Leclerc cutting across Max Verstappen who is on the dirty side. The top two go off the road. Do they open the door for George Russell? Massive spin in the middle of the pack as well. Max Verstappen takes the lead in the opening 200 meters of the Grand Prix but he was deep into the first turn as he did so. Cars absolutely everywhere. Russell is in third. Gasly is in fourth. Kevin Magnussen has improved a couple of positions as we have the yellow flag out in sector one. Sainz is at the back. Bottas and Alonso were involved in that as well. Decent enough getaway initially from Charles Leclerc but he glances in the mirror, realizes he has to go defensive and he's at the mercy of the line that Max takes. This needs to be addressed now. He wasn't in fourth at the apex and he pushed me wide so he needs to give that position back. He's just wrong place, wrong time. Does get tagged in the back as well. So they're fighting for space but no idea of grip levels at this stage and that is why he needed the nose change. Let's see what happens to Carlos. You're going through all that oil dry. Oh he tags Lewis. Yeah he just went in too deep. The stewards are looking at lap one, turn one. It's under investigation as a result and whoa! Who's gone off the road in the background there? Lando Norris I think. It's the McLaren. And Lando Norris goes off the road at turn 12 and that is a strange one. Now let's see if Hamilton can go around the outside. Would be a great move if he manages it and he does so. Up to 11th place though. Soft tyres not working on the AlphaTauri. Max Verstappen is given the five-second penalty for forcing another driver off the track. Sergio Perez who loves a street circuit. Five of his six Grand Prix victories have come at temporary facilities. That is opportunistic. That is brilliant from Esteban Ocon who hard charges his way by. As the racing continues down the strip into turn 14. And it's getting very, very, very tight no matter where you look on track. Oskar Piastri has got up to seventh position and then we go driver's eye view. Piastri trying to fight by. This is Lewis Hamilton trying to charge past Logan Sargent as well and he does so. Max Verstappen with his mirrors full. 1.2 miles flat to the floor in the wheel tracks. He's being called to the pits. Charles Leclerc doesn't know that. He's going to try and pull the move now to Scarlett Ferrari to the inside. Charles Leclerc takes the lead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. It's game on at the front of the field like we haven't seen for so long in Formula One. And the crowd adoring that moment. Diving down the inside of the Australian driver. Piastri trying to hang on to it. That enough to punch at the tyre. Sparks out the back of Piastri's car. That does sound like Hamilton. Yeah he's lifting. He is really in a bad way here with this puncture. Perez on that hard tyre attacking now with DRS and Perez taking the position away then. Oh is he going to try it on the inside here into turn 12. Oh it's going to be contact and it is contact. Max Verstappen into the side of George Russell. He was committed and in turn 12 the two of them come together. And so that is a massive benefit for the man who's put one of his best stints together of the entire season. And Sergio Perez gets a 2.4 second stop and is suddenly a contender. And absolutely he almost took his front jackman with him. He was so electric away from that pit stop. Penalty for Russell for causing a collision is the verdict of the stewards. And we're back to racing speeds around Formula One's newest venue that is providing so much by way of entertainment. And Pierre Gasly worried Sergio Perez into a defensive shape. That's Fernando Alonso to the inside of Logan Sargent. And he's making 11th place with that move. But the rear of the car very nearly getting away from him when he applied the power. Another move around the outside. We've got the Haas trying to go past Daniel Ricciardo. And that is a sweet pass once again for Nico Hülkenberg. Late, late, late on the brakes. And later still for Oskar Piastri who makes the corner, who makes the place and takes third. DRS is open again. This is the best run so far for Sergio Perez. Sergio Perez to the apex first. Sergio Perez to the lead of the Grand Prix. Having started in 11th, he had the run. He had the DRS. And the fans in the grandstand love another pass because we've got a third race leader tonight. These two are side by side, but not for much longer. The two teammates battling it out. And Esteban Ocon deep into Turn 1. Gasly sweeps on by. Great racing between these two. Nervy moments on the pit wall for Alpine. These two have history this season back in Australia where they collided after a great run. Okay, Espen, we want to hold position for the moment. Please hold position for the moment. Esteban Ocon going all in in Vegas and taking fifth place. So he is pushing hard on those tyres. And Charles Leclerc going to the inside. I was going to say if he's going to take a risk, there's a chance. I think Perez might have been caught by surprise. Another change of lead in Las Vegas. Are we about to resume the battle between Leclerc and Verstappen? The three race leaders in your picture at the moment. But is it a change of position between the two ripples as we go over the bumps? And it's Max Verstappen who takes second place in the race. There's a real opportunity now for Max Verstappen. And Charles Leclerc knows it. Driving on the mirrors now. Checking the left one. Checking the right one. Trying to keep the world champion behind. We go down the strip. We're going to get another change of lead. Max Verstappen takes the place back. But look at how brave on the brakes Charles was. But he couldn't close the door. Verstappen takes the lead back once again. This race completely changed by the full safety car. There's a big opportunity now for George Russell who appears in your picture ahead of the Williams. Nothing Alex Albon could do. And that is a good pass as we move our way through there. Was very nearly another one. Leclerc would desperately love to make that pass. Can he sit there for the remaining laps? And that's a wide moment for the Williams driver. And disappointment for Alex Albon who sees first Russell, then Sainz, then Alonso overtake him. And he drops out of the points. We're understandably focusing on the battle for second place at the moment. But Gasly has George Russell right behind him. Off the road goes Charles Leclerc at Turn 12. He's been brave on the brakes. But on this occasion just a bit wide on turning. Wheel-to-wheel action here. This is so quick through 17. That is unbelievably brave. We've been waiting to see two drivers go wheel-to-wheel through there. This is the last real corner on the racetrack. It's flat to the floor by the time that you get out of 14, 15 and 16. Charles Leclerc's going for it to the inside as he got the car slowed down. What a move Charles Leclerc. Absolutely brilliant at the last real chance that he had to make the pass. Dzeko tries to fight back. What a performance from the top three. Max Verstappen puts his name up in lights once again. And it's very close to the line. But it's Charles Leclerc who takes second place with a bold and brilliant move at the last real opportunity on the last lap. It's 18 Grand Prix victories for the season for Max Verstappen who wins the Las Vegas Grand Prix. It's one of those days where I'm being told to wrap up and I just don't want to. A delirious Grand Prix of thrilling excitement. We'll see you for the season finale when Formula One returns.