Gordon Ramsay jokingly accused Toto Wolff of trying to “kill” him when the Mercedes team principal gave the television star a spin around the Formula One circuit in Las Vegas. Celebrity chef Ramsay is used to working in high-pressure environments but he got a taste of his own medicine after he accepted an offer from the Mercedes chief to be driven at high speed around the Las Vegas F1 circuit, ahead of last month’s landmark race in the gambling capital of America.
The 57-year-old was practically having kittens when Wolff raced the pair through the streets of Las Vegas in a bright green AMG.
Footage of the lap has been shared on social media by Mercedes with British A-lister Ramsay looking increasingly white as he is thrown around the car at high speeds.
As the pair start to move off, the video on X shows Wolff asking Ramsay: “What’s the fastest you’ve ever driven on the strip?”
Before the worried chef can respond, Wolff smacks his foot down on the accelerator and hurtles the vehicle straight down a straight. Ramsay responds: “****! Yeah not this. Oh my god!”
Ramsay’s racing nightmares went up a notch when Wolff tried to make out that he didn’t know the circuit, by saying: “The problem is I have just started driving here. So I don’t know where the corners are.”
With the lap completed and the car brought to a standstill, a rattled Ramsay crawls out of the car and composes himself on his hands and knees on the tarmac. Before shouting: “******* hell. Seriously? Is he trying to ******* kill us! Oh my god.”
Ramsay was in attendance at the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 19 with his daughter Holly. The chef was one of numerous celebrities to flock to the star-studded event that was contested at night under the bright lights of sin city.
Despite suffering teething problems on the first practice day when a raised manhole led to the cancellation of an entire session, the event was considered an overall success. Max Verstappen took the chequered flag two seconds ahead of Charles Leclerc, who just managed to push Sergio Perez into third place.
Three Grands Prix were staged in the USA this year as F1 owners Liberty Media continue to push the sport in America. All three races in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas will return for the 2024 season.
