| Race details | |
|---|---|
| Race 1 of 14 in the2007 Champ Car season | |
 | |
| Date | April 8, 2007 |
| Official name | XIVegas Grand Prix |
| Location | Vegas Grand Prix Las Vegas,Nevada, United States |
| Course | Temporary street circuit 2.440 mi / 3.927 km |
| Distance | 68 laps 165.920 mi / 267.036 km |
| Weather | Sunny with temperatures reaching up to 91 °F (33 °C); wind speeds approaching 17.1 miles per hour (27.5 km/h)[1] |
| Pole position | |
| Driver |  Will Power (Team Australia) |
| Time | 1:17.629 |
| Fastest lap | |
| Driver | Will Power (Team Australia) |
| Time | 1:19.934 (on lap 44 of 68) |
| Podium | |
| First | Will Power (Team Australia) |
| Second |  Robert Doornbos (Minardi Team USA) |
| Third |  Paul Tracy (Forsythe Racing) |
The2007 Vegas Grand Prix was the first round of the2007 Champ Car World Series Season, held on April 8 on the streets ofLas Vegas,Nevada.
| Pos | Nat | Name | Team | Qual 1 | Qual 2 | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | | Will Power | Team Australia | 1:21.007 | 1:17.629 | 1:17.629 |
| 2 | | Paul Tracy | Forsythe Racing | 1:19.784 | 1:19.625 | 1:19.625* |
| 3 | | Robert Doornbos | Minardi Team USA | 1:20.991 | 1:18.515 | 1:18.515 |
| 4 | | Alex Tagliani | RSPORTS | 1:20.437 | 1:18.850 | 1:18.850 |
| 5 |  | Simon Pagenaud | Team Australia | 1:19.998 | 1:18.961 | 1:18.961 |
| 6 |  | Bruno Junqueira | Dale Coyne Racing | - | 1:19.102 | 1:19.102 |
| 7 |  | Mario Domínguez | Forsythe Racing | 1:22.384 | 1:19.156 | 1:19.156 |
| 8 |  | Justin Wilson | RSPORTS | 1:20.310 | 1:19.269 | 1:19.269 |
| 9 |  | Neel Jani | PKV Racing | 1:21.618 | 1:19.360 | 1:19.360 |
| 10 |  | Graham Rahal | N/H/L Racing | 1:23.307 | 1:19.710 | 1:19.710 |
| 11 | | Tristan Gommendy | PKV Racing | 1:21.565 | 1:19.784 | 1:19.784 |
| 12 | | Dan Clarke | Minardi Team USA | 1:22.123 | 1:19.814 | 1:19.814 |
| 13 | | Katherine Legge | Dale Coyne Racing | 1:22.420 | 1:20.104 | 1:20.104 |
| 14 |  | Matt Halliday | Conquest Racing | 13:20.444 | 1:20.122 | 1:20.122 |
| 15 |  | Ryan Dalziel | Pacific Coast Motorsports | 1:22.202 | 1:20.128 | 1:20.128 |
| 16 | | Sébastien Bourdais | N/H/L Racing | 1:20.197 | - | 1:20.197 |
| 17 | | Alex Figge | Pacific Coast Motorsports | 1:22.788 | 1:20.313 | 1:20.313 |
The race was a fresh start for the Champ Car World Series. With a new car (Panoz DP01), new rules, including timed races and staggered starts, new teams like Pacific Coast Motorsports, a different season opener on a new track, and an eventual return to ABC/ESPN later in the year, all were the big stories of the day. The race would be one of survival of the fittest as many drivers were taken out by either crashes or mechanical failures. Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing would not have a good day as 3-time championSébastien Bourdais was hampered by numerous tire problems and rookieGraham Rahal was taken out on the first lap.Will Power had the dominant car all day long, only being challenged consistently byPaul Tracy, who many saw as the man to unseat Bourdais as the face of Champ Car. In the end, the race would all come down to fuel mileage. Tracy's car struggled with taking a full load of fuel preventing him from snapping his winless streak. Will Power outlasted the field to take his first career victory, which was also the first Champ Car victory by an Australian, in a dominant fashion.
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Will Power | Team Australia | 68 | 1:45:13.637 | 1 | 34 |
| 2 | 14 | Robert Doornbos | Minardi Team USA | 68 | +16.789 | 3 | 27 |
| 3 | 3 | Paul Tracy | Forsythe Racing | 68 | +27.356 | 2 | 27 |
| 4 | 8 | Alex Tagliani | RSPORTS | 68 | +48.981 | 4 | 24 |
| 5 | 22 | Tristan Gommendy | PKV Racing | 68 | +1:10.396 | 11 | 21 |
| 6 | 11 | Katherine Legge | Dale Coyne Racing | 68 | +1:21.261 | 13 | 20 |
| 7 | 19 | Bruno Junqueira | Dale Coyne Racing | 66 | + 1 Lap | 6 | 18 |
| 8 | 29 | Alex Figge | Pacific Coast Motorsports | 63 | + 5 Laps | 17 | 15 |
| 9 | 7 | Mario Domínguez | Forsythe Racing | 57 | + 11 Laps | 7 | 13 |
| 10 | 21 | Neel Jani | PKV Racing | 56 | Mechanical | 9 | 11 |
| 11 | 28 | Ryan Dalziel | Pacific Coast Motorsports | 52 | + 16 Laps | 15 | 10 |
| 12 | 15 | Simon Pagenaud | Team Australia | 47 | Engine | 5 | 9 |
| 13 | 1 | Sébastien Bourdais | N/H/L Racing | 30 | Accident | 16 | 8 |
| 14 | 9 | Justin Wilson | RSPORTS | 20 | Input shaft | 8 | 7 |
| 15 | 4 | Dan Clarke | Minardi Team USA | 13 | Accident | 12 | 6 |
| 16 | 42 | Matt Halliday | Conquest Racing | 3 | Accident | 14 | 5 |
| 17 | 2 | Graham Rahal | N/H/L Racing | 1 | Accident | 10 | 4 |
| Laps | Cause |
|---|---|
| 1 | Yellow Start |
| 2-5 | Rahal/Halliday crash |
| 6-7 | Figge stalled |
| 14-17 | Clarke crash |
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Attendance at the inaugural 2007 event was estimated to be 40,000 fans on race day. This surpassed the number of seats available on the course's temporary grandstands facilitating an expansion for the 2008 season.[2][3]
This was the third race forChamp Car in Las Vegas, but the only one held on a downtown street course. Two oval Grands Prix had taken place atLas Vegas Motor Speedway: the2004 Bridgestone 400 and the2005 Hurricane Relief 400. The planned 2008 race was removed from the calendar due to Champ Car's merge with theIndy Racing League (IRL).
IRL returned to Las Vegas in 2011, however the return was at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, rather than to a downtown street course.
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| Previous race: 2005 Hurricane Relief 400 (Las Vegas Motor Speedway) | Champ Car in Las Vegas | Next race: 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship (Las Vegas Motor Speedway;IndyCar Series event) |