Mercedes outline 'trip into unknown' Las Vegas concerns

Mercedes has voiced concerns ahead of the Las Vegas Grand Prix next weekend, the penultimate event of the Formula 1 season.

The Brackley-based squad enters the round after a disappointing outing in Brazil last time out where it scored eighth place with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell retired as the W14 was badly exposed.

Las Vegas' return to the F1 schedule will see the F1 race down the famous strip with the Grand Prix being staged on Saturday night local time - the first Saturday race since 1985.

Cold temperatures are set to be present when the action kicks off as all of the sessions will be held after sunset, which may see drivers struggle to generate tyre grip.

Teams will have to combat the cold temperatures while also learning the circuit for the first time.

'A trip into the unknown'

Riccardo Musconi, Mercedes' Head of Trackside Performance, has stated that all teams are facing a trip into the unkown in Las Vegas.

"It's a completely new ball game," he said.

"We have tried to gather as much information, as I am sure every other team has tried to.

"We have models of the track in the simulator, we have gathered other information and pictures of the tarmac and so on.

"The weather is going to play a big part too. It is quite cold at this time of the year in Vegas, especially with the sessions happening around midnight.

"We will have the softest selection of tyres.

"That is adding an extra dimension to the problem. The truth is every team to some degree will venture into the unknown because we don’t have any previous data.

"The preparation work we are conducting at the factory will have to cover different dimensions, different aspects of it and more than we usually do for other tracks."