The Concours at Wynn Las Vegas: A New King Emerges in the Supercar Universe
The definition of “concours d’elegance” is a showcase or contest where vehicles and accessories are judged primarily on their appearance and presentation.
As a long-time participant in the high-end automotive world, you’ll eventually encounter the debate: which event surpasses the renowned Pebble Beach Concours? Typically, this refers to the broader Monterey Car Week, a collection of prestigious gatherings culminating in the ultimate concours on Sunday. This week is essentially a luxurious celebration of all things expensive and four-wheeled. The question frequently arises: Is the Goodwood Festival of Speed superior to Pebble Beach? What about the Goodwood Revival, Amelia Island, Moda Miami, or Retromobile? Audrain?
Whenever affluent and stylish individuals gather to admire blue-chip automobiles, the same question surfaces: Is Pebble Beach still the king of concours? While Pebble Beach remains the reigning monarch of concours, its heir apparent—The Quail—may face a new, formidable challenger from Las Vegas.
Why The Quail?
The Quail, officially known as The Quail: A Motorsports Gathering, has long served as an impressive prelude to the main event: Sunday’s Pebble Concours. In fact, for a significant and growing segment of the automotive community, The Quail has already surpassed Pebble’s Sunday showcase. These enthusiasts typically favor late-model and brand-new supercars and hypercars. Countless friends in the automotive world travel to Car Week but skip Sunday’s event, having no interest in “a bunch of old cars.” Furthermore, the demise of the Geneva International Auto Show left a void in the supercar calendar, a gap that The Quail has filled admirably.
For example, the Lamborghini Aventador debuted at Geneva in 2011, and the highly anticipated Veneno was unveiled there in 2013. The Aventador’s successor, the Revuelto, was introduced via an online unveiling. However, the Temerario (the Huracán’s replacement) made its world debut at The Quail in 2024. Similarly, the seven-figure Fenomeno was unveiled at the 2025 Quail. Bugatti launched the Chiron in Geneva in 2016, but the Bugatti Divo (2018) and Mistral (2022) both premiered at The Quail. This trend extends to numerous other vehicles, establishing The Quail as the premier global destination for these cutting-edge machines.
Until recently, I believed The Quail’s position in the global automotive hierarchy was secure. Then I attended the 2025 Las Vegas Concours (officially Concours at Wynn Las Vegas), and now I’m not so sure. I must preface this by explaining that I also attended the 2024 Vegas Concours. While enjoyable, it struck me as more regional or provincial. There were some impressive cars, but they were the usual suspects. In fact, had I not been working on a project with Czinger (who invited me as their guest), I probably wouldn’t have attended this year. However, I am extremely grateful that I did.
What Is It?
The Wynn featured 48 Bugatti Veyrons on the lawn this year. That’s right. Of the 450 Veyrons built worldwide and the 100 sold in North America, 48 were in Vegas. Actually, 49, as Bugatti also displayed 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 model of the upcoming Tourbillon, the 18-cylinder hybrid that will replace the Chiron. Gathering more than 10% of all Bugatti Veyrons ever produced in one place remains astonishing.
Are Porsches also a favorite? The Quail has always been the premier venue for testing and introducing the most exclusive and limited-edition Porsches. But the 2025 Las Vegas Concours might have just stolen the crown for the best Porsche display. The museum in Stuttgart boasts one of the world’s largest collections of rare Porsche prototypes, and the 2024 Vegas Concours was hailed as the largest gathering of Porsche prototypes ever held outside of Zuffenhausen. This year, however, the Wynn didn’t just beat The Quail; it blew it out of the water. There were more Porsches in Vegas than I thought were even built. They had every variant of the 997 GT3, every variant of the 991 GT3, every variant of the 992 GT3, every variant of the 992 GT3 RS, some of the rarest 911s ever made, and some rare Porsches that I didn’t know existed. They even had the rarest Porsches in the world, the 997 Cup car (one of two in the world) and the rarest 992 GT3 RS ever made, a one-off that has only been shown at the factory and in Vegas. If you’re a Porsche enthusiast, there has never been a show like this before.
The kids like Paganis, too, right? There were more than 40 of them. I didn’t get the exact number (I was too busy drooling over the Veyrons), but there were several Zondas, including a Zonda Revolution (one of five), dozens of Huayras, a bunch of Utopias, and—worrying for The Quail—the debut of the Huayra Codalunga Speedster that Pagani plans to produce in a limited run of 10 at a price of $7 million each before taxes and tariffs, if you’re interested. (The mint-green one under the covers belongs to Apple CEO Tim Cook.) Even if these boisterous carbon-titanium machines aren’t your preference, the fact that the 2025 Las Vegas Concours was the largest Pagani gathering ever held in North America, and that Horatio Pagani (who was honored onstage by emcee Justin Bell for his contributions to automotive design) and his team chose to unveil a car there, speaks volumes. More on that later. Getting back to the 40+ Paganis: That’s more cars than the factory produces in a single year.
The Lamborghini display was equally astonishing for those who appreciate these types of vehicles. Firstly, the 2025 Wynn Vegas Concours hosted the largest gathering of Lamborghinis ever assembled. Yes, ever. Again, I didn’t count, but the number being discussed was around 230. That accounts for 230 of the 600 cars displayed that Saturday. It was simply mind-blowing. Of those 230, there was a Veneno Coupe (one of only three sold to the public; the factory retained a fourth), a Sesto Elemento (one of 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 “limited editions” (as Lamborghini now calls them) together in the same location was at the factory museum. It was a stunning exhibition of rare, high-horsepower Italian metal and composites.
To keep this account concise, I am omitting details about the numerous Koenigseggs, the Gumpert Apollo, the Czingers, the Nilu, the debut of the McLaren Project Endurance race car, all the judged vehicles (including a former, insane Pebble Beach Concours-winning 1929 Mercedes-Benz 680 S Barker Tourer 26/120/180 that also won best of show in the prewar category here), the HWA EVO, a Mercedes-AMG One, two Oldsmobile Aerotechs, and a McLaren F1. Truly, it was an extraordinary car show.
What Could Possibly Happen Next?
Two recurring topics of conversation at the Wynn Vegas Concours were the big question: “How on earth are they going to top this next year?” No one has the answer, but best of luck to the Wynn. The other, frankly more intriguing question, came from the OEM car manufacturers: “Should we even bother attending The Quail next year?” A valid question. Perhaps it is time to bid The Quail farewell.
Things You Might Not Know About The Quail: A single ticket cost $1,300 last year. That’s $1,300 as a courtesy to past attendees (“legacy ticket holders,” I believe they call them). First-time attendees paid $1,600. Yes, that’s expensive, but it costs OEMs approximately $400,000 to showcase a car at their stand there. For six hours. The Vegas Concours charges about 1/20 of that amount. And if you want to attend, tickets are $100 each. That’s about $2 per Veyron. Three different car manufacturers I spoke with openly questioned the need to attend The Quail again. Perhaps, they mused, Las Vegas and Moda Miami are sufficient? Moreover, for attendees, you won’t be facing heart-attack-inducing hotel prices (a friend stayed at a motel near Pebble that was $1,100 a night, with a five-night minimum), nor struggling through soul-crushing traffic while running between events. Additionally, securing dinner reservations is easy because Las Vegas is literally built to host large gatherings.
While this may sound far-fetched, Geneva was the epicenter of the
