The parking lot of the Caesar's Palace Casino in Las Vegas hardly appeared to be the appropriate venue for a dramatic F1 championship showdown, but the promoters of the gambling capital of the world had drummed-up the absurd idea, and Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone was game, quite literally .
On this day in 1981, the Las Vegas Grand Prix was a title-decider between three drivers: clear favorite Carlos Reutemann for Williams, Brabham's Nelson Piquet and Ligier's Jacques Laffite.
Reutemann reminded everyone who was in charge for securing pole in qualifying. But it all fell apart for the moody Argentine on Sunday when he was defeated by a recalcitrant gearbox and Williams team mate Alan Jones.
Ultimately, Reutemann finished a distant 8th and Piquet clinched the title by a single point!
