The Sun-Scorched Parking Lot That Hosted F1’s First Las Vegas Grand Prix

Las Vegas is set to host the FIA Formula 1 World Championship later this week. This impending half-billion-dollar gamble isn’t the first time that the Grand Prix circus has visited the Entertainment Capital of the World. Unlike the state-of-the-art facility awaiting today’s teams, F1’s original two-year foray to the casino oasis was spent in the parking lot of Caesars Palace.

The early 1980s for Formula 1 was similar to the present in many ways. The championship’s then-commercial czar Bernie Ecclestone had massive aspirations to expand the race schedule to lucrative new markets. In the midst of the Cold War, he envisioned running street circuit races in the capitals of communism and capitalism. Yes, Bernie wanted F1 to race in Moscow under the shadow of the Kremlin and around the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in lower Manhattan.

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Caesars Palace pushed this formula to its absolute limit in October 1980. The Roman Empire-themed casino hosted “The Last Hurrah!” which would be the penultimate fight of Muhammad Ali’s boxing career. Ali would challenge his sparring partner Larry Holmes for the world heavyweight championship. With their existing venue unable to satisfy demand, the casino built a temporary 24,790-seat outdoor arena in its parking lot.

The event itself was grotesque. Ali’s health was already declining. The 38-year-old had trembling hands and other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, a diagnosis that he would make public a few years later. According to BoxingRec, Holmes landed 340 punches in the 89-degree heat. Ali landed just 42. The fight was stopped after the tenth round.

The balance sheet told a completely different story. Caesars Palace made $5,766,125 in gate revenue, a then-record for boxing. The most expensive ticket cost $500, or about $1,860 in today’s dollars. Ali-Holmes ended up just the start of big outdoor bouts at the Palace. The casino had eyes on expanding outside of boxing.

The stark transition from parking lot to empty land is the circuit’s only notable feature