The Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend was opened with a bang as a full-blown opening ceremony was announced ahead of the inaugural Sunday race. This event included a concert where various musicians took to the stage to set the mood before the racing gets away. Journey, a massively famous American rock band, performed their music in a short set and enthralled the gathered crowd before giving away the stage to other artists like John Legend and J Balvin.

Neal Schon, the co-founder, songwriter, and the lead guitarist of Journey had previously expressed his excitement over getting a chance to play at the highlight event of the 2023 calendar. Schon had also included a special message for the Band’s fans while speaking about the Las Vegas Show.

The big news is me and Jonathan Cain and I are back on track.

However, Schon’s announcement for the band’s slot at the iconic event held relief for long-term fans of ‘Journey’, as reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Schon also appeared to enjoy their short 3-minute performance as he branded the set “wicked, short, and sweet”. With several controversies surrounding the Las Vegas GP ceremony, this one has proven to be a positive breath of air. Now, the fans await the noise of the Formula 1 monsters as they zoom past the ‘Vegas Strip’.

F1 World Champion Max Verstappen ridicules the Las Vegas GP opening ceremony

The inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix, soon after its announcement, claimed its position as the most-awaited Grand Prix weekend of the 2023 Calendar. The iconic race has been eagerly anticipated throughout the 2023 season and the festivities, which were scheduled ahead of the Grand Prix, were set in motion on Thursday with an opening ceremony on the ‘Vegas Strip’.

Along with a drone show and several musical performances, the event included a section during which the drivers were to emerge in front of spectators from giant boxes on the pit straight. Max Verstappen, the current World Champion of Formula 1, expressed his disdain about this section. When the ‘three-time World Champion was asked about his feelings regarding the ceremony, Verstappen dismissed it.

For me, you can all skip these things, It's not about the singer, it's just standing up there, you look like a clown.

Max Verstappen said.

Verstappen also chose to opt out of a following VIP event at the Wynn’s hotel, which was scheduled for all drivers. Verstappen has been extremely vocal in his annoyance over the Las Vegas Pre-show. As the Red Bull driver is the clear favorite to take the win at the inaugural Grand Prix, it will be interesting to see if he does celebrate his predicted win with any emotion.

In case you missed it:

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