We’re coming to you from the Strip with several Las Vegas updates! F1 preparations are well underway, we’re going to show you some of that… then walk down to the construction site of the new Hard Rock Las Vegas to show you what they put up. Then we’re going to visit the new Las Vegas baseball stadium to see how that construction project is coming along! And it’s all This Week in Gambling!
The 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix race course is almost completed, as the installation of lighting, barriers, and grandstands continues all along the racetrack. Setup has taken less time this year as two crews have been working on the 3.8 mile course, which winds down Koval, Sands, and Harmon before shooting past the Sphere and down the strip at over 200 mph!
Race weekend is November 20th through the 22nd, with roads in the area closing at 1 p.m. each day. Once the race is over, tear down should be done before Christmas, and plans are for the Las Vegas F1 to continue for at least the next 2 years.
The next of our Las Vegas updates takes us to where the city’s new Major League Baseball stadium is under construction where the Tropicana once stood. But so far, there’s not a whole lot to see… unless you just like dirt. Costs continue to rise with the estimated price of the venue growing by $250 million recently, bringing the grand total to $1.75 billion.
This, along with reports that the team is $1 billion short of the needed funding, has raised some serious doubts that the ballpark will actually be completed. Plus, residents in the area are not thrilled with the venue’s Strip location, or that 350 million of their tax dollars that are being dumped into construction. However, at this time, the stadium is still on schedule to open in January of 2028.
Finally this week, the last of our Vegas updates takes us to the new Hard Rock, which is still a long way from opening. But their giant guitar-shaped tower is now beginning to take shape in the middle of the Strip, easily visible, poking its head just above the privacy fences. Since construction began, Hard Rock has updated their plans for the property, expanding the pool complex by 50%, the spa area by 300%, and their 700 foot guitar hotel tower will now have 675 rooms, up from the original 600 that were planned.
These announcements come as Las Vegas tourism numbers have dropped over the first half of this year. But Hard Rock says they believe in the long-term strength of the city. The resort was originally scheduled to open in early 2027, a number that has since been revised to the last quarter of that year. But with a project this big, we shouldn’t be surprised if it is delayed even further.
