The Concours at Wynn Las Vegas: A New Supercar Showdown
The definition of a “concours d’elegance” typically refers to a prestigious gathering where automobiles and accessories are judged primarily on their appearance and polish.
If you frequent the world of high-end vehicles, you’re often asked to compare different shows to the renowned Pebble Beach Concours. The latter is generally understood to encompass the entire Monterey Car Week, which includes numerous events leading up to the Sunday finale. Together, these gatherings form a lavish spectacle of expensive and exotic cars, culminating in the world’s most respected concours. However, the question frequently arises: Is the Goodwood Festival of Speed a match for Pebble? Or what about the Goodwood Revival, Amelia Island, Moda Miami, or Retromobile?
Indeed, whenever wealthy and stylish enthusiasts convene to admire blue-chip automobiles, the conversation inevitably turns to whether Pebble Beach still holds the top spot. The truth is, Pebble Beach remains the king of concours events. But the heir apparent to Pebble’s throne—The Quail—may have a formidable new competitor challenging its dominance.
Why The Quail?
For years, The Quail (formally known as The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering) has served as an exceptional appetizer to the main event: the Pebble Concours held on Sunday. In fact, for a significant and growing segment of the car community, The Quail has long surpassed the significance of Sunday’s Pebble event. These enthusiasts are particularly interested in late-model and brand-new supercars and hypercars. I’ve lost count of the number of friends who travel to Car Week but skip Sunday, stating they have no interest in “a bunch of old cars.” Furthermore, the closure of the Geneva International Auto Show left a considerable gap in the supercar calendar, a void that The Quail has successfully filled.
Let me provide some examples. The Lamborghini Aventador debuted at Geneva in 2011, and the highly expensive Veneno was unveiled there in 2013. The Aventador’s successor, the Revuelto, made its official public debut through an online reveal; however, the Temerario (the Huracán’s successor) was first shown at The Quail in 2024. The same holds true for the Fenomeno, a seven-figure vehicle that premiered at the 2025 Quail. Bugatti unveiled the Chiron at Geneva in 2016; however, the Bugatti Divo (2018) and Mistral (2022) were both first introduced to the world at The Quail. Many other car manufacturers have followed a similar pattern. In short, The Quail has evolved into the premier showcase for these types of vehicles.
Until this past Halloween, I believed The Quail’s position in the global automotive landscape was secure. Then I attended the 2025 Las Vegas Concours (officially called Concours at Wynn Las Vegas), and now I’m not so sure. I should mention that I also attended the 2024 Vegas Concours, and while I enjoyed it, it struck me as largely regional or even provincial. There were some impressive cars, but they were mostly the usual suspects. In fact, if it weren’t for a project I was working on with Czinger (which brought me there as a guest), I probably wouldn’t have bothered attending this year. But I am so glad I went.
What Is It?
The Wynn featured 48 Bugatti Veyrons on display this year. Yes, you read that correctly. Out of the 450 Veyrons ever built and the 100 sold in North America, 48 of them were at the Vegas show. Well, 49, as Bugatti also brought a stunning white Vitesse Super Sport to celebrate the Veyron’s 20th anniversary—along with a Bolide, Centodieci, Chiron Super Sport, Divo, Mistral, and a prototype of the upcoming Tourbillon, the 18-cylinder hybrid that will replace the Chiron. Displaying more than 10 percent of all Bugatti Veyrons ever produced in one place still boggles my mind.
The younger crowd likes Paganis too, right? Because there were more than 40 of them. I didn’t get the exact count (I was too busy admiring the Veyrons), but there were several Zondas, including a Zonda Revolution (one of only five), dozens of Huayras, a selection of Utopias, and—worryingly for The Quail—the world premiere of the Huayra Codalunga Speedster that Pagani plans to produce in a limited run of 10 vehicles, priced at $7 million each before taxes and tariffs, in case you’re interested. (The mint green one displayed in Vegas under a cover reportedly belongs to Apple CEO Tim Cook.) Even if these extroverted carbon-titanium machines aren’t your cup of tea, the fact that the 2025 Las Vegas Concours was not only the largest gathering of Paganis ever held in North America, but also that Horatio Pagani (who was honored on stage by master of ceremonies Justin Bell for his contributions to car design) and his team chose to introduce a new vehicle there speaks volumes. More on that shortly. Returning to the topic of more than 40 Paganis: That is a larger number of cars than the factory produces in a full year.
The Lamborghini display was equally astonishing if you’re into these types of automobiles. First off, the 2025 Wynn Vegas Concours marked the largest gathering of Lamborghinis ever. Yes, ever. Again, I didn’t count, but the number being circulated was around 230. That’s 230 out of the 600 cars present that Saturday. Simply mind-blowing. Among these 230, there was a Veneno Coupe (one of only three sold to the public; the factory retained a fourth), a Sesto Elemento (one of only 10), a Centenario Coupe (one of 20) and Convertible (one of 20), and a Reventón (one of 21). The last time I saw all these rare models (as Lamborghini now calls them) together in the same location was at the factory museum. It was a stunning display of precious, high-horsepower Italian metal and composite materials.
In an effort to keep this article concise, I have omitted mention of the Koenigseggs, the Gumpert Apollo, the Czingers, the Nilu, the McLaren Project Endurance race car debut, all the vehicles that were actually judged (including a former and insane Pebble Beach Concours-winning 1929 Mercedes-Benz 680 S Barker Tourer 26/120/180 that also won Best of Show for pre-war vehicles here), the HWA EVO, a Mercedes-AMG One, two Oldsmobile Aerotechs, and a McLaren F1. Yes, that’s one hell of a car show.
What Could Possibly Be Next?
Two main lines of conversation kept resurfacing as I mingled with fellow attendees at the Wynn Vegas Concours. The first big question was: “How on earth are they going to top this next year?” I have no idea, but I wish the Wynn the best of luck. The second, and frankly more intriguing, query kept coming from the OEM car manufacturers: “Should we even bother participating in The Quail next year?” A good question. Perhaps I should wish The Quail luck as well.
Things you may not know about The Quail: A single ticket cost $1,300 last year. That’s $1,300 as a courtesy if you’ve attended in the past (“legacy ticket holders,” I believe they are called). It cost $1,600 for first-time attendees. Yes, that is expensive, but it costs OEMs about $400,000 to set up a car stand there. For six hours. The Vegas Concours charges about one-twentieth of that price. And if you want to attend, tickets are $100 each. That’s about $2 per Veyron. I spoke with three different carmakers who openly questioned the need to ever attend The Quail again. Perhaps, they mused, Las Vegas and Moda Miami are sufficient? Moreover, for attendees, you won’t be paying heart-stopping hotel prices (a friend stayed at a motel near Pebble that cost $1,100 a night, with a five-night minimum), nor dealing with soul-crushing traffic while rushing between events. Plus, making dinner reservations is easy because Las Vegas is literally built to accommodate large gatherings.
The above situation might seem unlikely, but just a few years ago, Geneva was the epicenter of the supercar world. I cannot predict the future, but I can assure you that the Concours at Wynn Las Vegas is now on my must-attend list. You should add it to yours as well.
The Concours at Wynn Las Vegas: A New Supercar Showdown
The definition of a “concours d’elegance” typically refers to a prestigious gathering where automobiles and accessories are judged primarily on their appearance and polish.
If you frequent the world of high-end vehicles, you’re often asked to compare different shows to the renowned Pebble Beach Concours. The latter is generally understood to encompass the entire Monterey Car Week, which includes numerous events leading up to the Sunday finale. Together, these gatherings form a lavish spectacle of expensive and exotic cars, culminating in the world’s most respected concours. However, the question frequently arises: Is the Goodwood Festival of Speed a match for Pebble? Or what about the Goodwood Revival, Amelia Island, Moda Miami, or Retromobile?
Indeed, whenever wealthy and stylish enthusiasts convene to admire blue-chip automobiles, the conversation inevitably turns to whether Pebble Beach still holds the top spot. The truth is, Pebble Beach remains the king of concours events. But the heir apparent to Pebble’s throne—The Quail—may have a formidable new competitor challenging its dominance.
Why The Quail?
