Bugatti Returns to Formula 1 (Sort of)

Like the distant rumble of an approaching thunderstorm, the collective engine notes hint at the constrained intensity waiting to be unleashed. The cadre of Bugatti hypercars prepares to take on the Formula 1 track while a field of Prancing Horses from Maranello line up alongside.

This, though, is not the 1956 Belgian Grand Prix, the last Formula 1 race the French marque entered. The approximately 36,000 hp of combined output from Molsheim is waiting to enter the circuit for a couple of spirited laps only moments after the final qualifying session of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. The assemblage of 24 dream machines, ranging from the Veyron to the Chiron to the Divo, are being piloted by their owners as part of the Bugatti Grand Prix experience.

“I’ve never seen even one of these in person before,” says a course official, mesmerized by the two long rows of horseshoe-grilled beasts set to roar off across the very tarmac that the Mercedes F1 team’s George Russell had just secured pole position on. Eventually, the procession is given the signal to proceed and, in short order, arcs through turns around the state-of-the-art Sphere entertainment venue and darts along the most famous straightaway in the world, the Las Vegas Strip. It’s a sight that further enhances the level of exclusivity continuing to define the premier motorsport series in what’s perhaps second only to Monaco as its most prestigious stop. Yet for Bugatti, such unprecedented access is nearly as critical to deliver as its rarified coupes and roadsters.

“We want to be close to our customers,” says Mate Rimac, CEO of Bugatti Rimac and founder of the Rimac Group, which includes Rimac Technology. “We want to understand them, what they want, and what they would like to see from us—where we can improve and do things differently, so these are really important occasions for us,” the 36-year-old industry titan tells Robb Report, invited to take part in the program.

Yet it seems that Bugatti’s presence in Vegas is not a harbinger of any plans to field a motorsport team of its own again, but merely a framework to foster camaraderie within its customer base and commemorate a milestone for its Type 35 racer. From its debut at the 1924 Grand Prix de Lyon, the open-wheel tour de force garnered approximately 2,500 first-place finishes, including consecutive victories at the Targa Florio from 1925 through 1929.

“This year we’re celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Type 35, the most successful grand prix race car in history, and I had an idea to do something out of that” says Sascha Doering, Bugatti’s COO of the Americas. The resulting three-day Bugatti Grand Prix event replaces, at least for 2024, the annual stateside Grand Tour rally that the automaker hosts for its owners, which number around 300 in North America.

“We try to push the boundaries, and I didn’t like our plan for this year, so by about April or May we scratched it,” says Doering. “We then asked Mr. Domenicali [Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of Formula 1] about this idea—100 years of the Type 35 . . . Las Vegas during qualifying hours, our clients, 20 Bugattis plus—let’s go. He said yes, and we just went for it. There’s no more drama than Las Vegas, F1, and Bugatti on the track.”

Fittingly, that drama started out at the Wynn’s 1,600-seat Awakening Theater the night before. There, driven onto the 360-degree rotating stage, each owner’s car had a turn being introduced like a prize fighter by the emcee—amidst the theater’s ever-changing illumination effects—while showgirls carried the Vin number of the vehicle overhead, and all to an audience of about 75 people. The spectacle was followed up with a welcome reception at the Wynn’s Art Deco–themed jazz club Delilah, where the rare automotive expressions found a comparable pairing with Napa’s ne plus ultra of wine. Francois Vignaud, director of Harlan Estate, poured a 1995 Harlan Estate Cabernet Sauvignon–based blend from Oakville, only the fifth vintage from the now-fabled winery.

A take on Breakfast at Tiffany’s was offered on the morning of F1 qualifying, with a private shopping session at Chanel complemented by cappuccinos and mimosas as Rimac made the rounds conversing with clients. Race day on Saturday had a more pressing start, however, as drivers met at the hotel’s pop-up Bugatti Pit Stop Lounge for a briefing before embarking on a tour with their hypercars to Valley of Fire State Park.

As the caravan carved through the ancient, red-hued rock garden, the four-wheel wonders temporarily trumped the surrounding natural splendor when it came attracting attention, moving with a fluidity seemingly powerful enough to cause differential erosion by just the visual of them all. Equally unusual to see in the wild was one driver in particular, Jean Arnault, watch director for Louis Vuitton and son of LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault, piloting a Chiron Super Sport.

“There are two aspects to the whole ownership of a Bugatti,” explains Frank Heyl, the marque’s head of design and man responsible for penning the new 1,800 hp Tourbillon hybrid. “The one is that you’re enjoying your car . . . you’re buying into this beautiful experience that you have when you sit in the driver’s seat. However, there’s a second side to all this, which is that it’s also access to an extremely limited circle of people.” Heyl adds that this owner set has the “feel like a family because it’s so small—there’s a great level of trust.”

That trust was evident trackside at the Wynn Grid Club, as a relaxed Rimac, Arnault, and various glitterati enjoyed the race together above the din of the pack chasing Russell, who held on to win while his teammate Lewis Hamilton crossed the line second. Despite those results, Max Verstappen’s fifth-place finish was enough for him to secure his fourth straight Driver’s Championship title, even with two more races left in the season.

During the action, Bugatti owner Shannon Ralston—who brought two examples of the Chiron Super Sport to Vegas—took a moment to echo the sentiment expressed by Heyl, but with a caveat. “I really don’t care about exclusivity,” says Ralston. “I like something that delivers a level of excitement and pleasure that nothing else has provided for me . . . the family environment at Bugatti has pulled me in, and I’m all in.”  

That level of connection will likely be key to how the ultra-luxury and top-tier performance OEMs further distinguish themselves during the industry’s current state of flux when it comes to power trains and the road forward. “We love making and selling cars, but it’s about more than that,” says Rimac. “It’s about creating community . . . knowing more and better about what they want us to do for the future, because we are creating the future of the brand right now.”

Click here for more photos from the Bugatti Grand Prix experience.