Circuit of the Americas will rename its final turn ‘The Andretti’ at this weekend’s United States Grand Prix.
The track is recognizing the incredible career of Mario Andretti, who also drove the first ever lap of COTA when it opened in 2012. The 82-year-old – who last weekend drove a modern McLaren F1 car at Laguna Seca – will be honored with a naming ceremony on Thursday, October 20 in Austin, ahead of the race weekend getting underway.
Turn 20 will become ‘The Andretti’ and complete the lap as the circuit also celebrates its tenth anniversary. Andretti is one of the most widely successful drivers in motorsport history, having won the 1978 Formula 1 world championship and taken 12 victories in his F1 career, as well as winning the 1969 Indianapolis 500, the 1967 Daytona 500 and four IndyCar titles.
There are also two demonstration runs scheduled for McLaren and Andretti at this weekend’s race at COTA, with the American racing legend getting behind the wheel of the MP4-28A once again on Saturday and Sunday.
The United States Grand Prix is expecting another record attendance of over 400,000 this weekend, where Alex Palou will also run for McLaren in FP1 and Logan Sargeant makes his race weekend debut for Williams in the same session.
I’m still with Will Buxton and say that Turn 1 at COTA needs to be called “Phil Hill.”
I’m still wondering what engine is in that car? Is it a Honda that’s two steps from blowing up or did they get an old Mercedes or Renault?
October 17, 2022, 06:01 PM
P250UA5
I get running the current livery, but I think they should just run it in its original colors, rather than badging a Renault or Honda PU McLaren as a Mercedes.
Edit: That's a McLaren MP4-28, which had a Mercedes V8, so for once the current livery matches the power unit for the contemporary. Still think they should've left the Vodafone livery & run it as it was This message has been edited. Last edited by: P250UA5,
I am reading that Mercedes played similar games with what counts as cost and what doesnt. I would not be surprised that Ferrari did as well.
I just thinks its funny they are expected to go from spending 400m to 145m and not play games with the numbers.
This business will get out of control. It will get out of control and we'll be lucky to live through it. -Rear Admiral (Lower Half) Joshua Painter Played by Senator Fred Thompson
October 18, 2022, 11:44 AM
220-9er
I haven't read the wording of the cost rules but can imagine how many areas could be exploited to get around those rules and how complex they would need to be to cover every contingency. In the words of a former President, "depends what the meaning of the word is, is."
COTA this weekend! Wish I was going, but I heard the crowds were a pain last year, surely to be similar this year. I know it was tough getting around the merch/concessions area in 17/18 when we attanded.
The Enemy's gate is down.
October 18, 2022, 02:57 PM
mttaylor1066
I AM going to COTA this weekend, three day ticket.
Any advice to maximize my enjoyment?
___________________
Company, villainous company hath been the spoil of me.
Originally posted by mttaylor1066: I AM going to COTA this weekend, three day ticket.
Any advice to maximize my enjoyment?
Get there early & plan on staying all day. Where are your seats? If you're in the esses (T3-5) or T9 area, plan on a long trip to get across the 2 bridges over the track.
The 2 years (2017/18) we went we got there in the morning & still had almost a 1 mile walk from Lot F to the main gate.
If you have cheaper grandstand seats, I'd recommend stopping at WalMart or Academy & get some stadium chairs, as the metal bleachers aren't the most comfortable. I think the higher priced seats have actual chairs in the stands, or cushions at least.
The years we went weren't sellouts and it was still crowded, but traffic wasn't terrible. I imagine that isn't the case now.
The Enemy's gate is down.
October 20, 2022, 10:05 AM
cheesegrits
I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner.
From Motorsport Week: In a first for Formula 1, McLaren have announced a deal with Seamless Digital which will see it embed digital screens on its two Formula 1 cars throughout the remainder of the 2022 F1 season.
Starting at this weekend’s United States Grand Prix, both MCL36 cars will have digital advertising screens embedded into the cockpit surround, which will allow it to “dynamically change branding” during a session or from race-to-race.
I'm actually surprised for the opposite. Curious how much weight penalty this adds to the car, where grams = tenths, plus additional electrical draw/interference.
The Enemy's gate is down.
October 20, 2022, 10:48 AM
cheesegrits
quote:
Originally posted by P250UA5: I'm actually surprised for the opposite. Curious how much weight penalty this adds to the car, where grams = tenths, plus additional electrical draw/interference.
I wondered about that, too. I guess the extra ad revenue outweighs the drawbacks.
October 20, 2022, 10:57 AM
P250UA5
Being only 13 points behind Alpine, not sure I'd want to add 'unnecessary' complexity to the car. But, they're 78 clear of Alfa, so 5th is locked in even if they skipped the next couple races completely.
The Enemy's gate is down.
October 20, 2022, 11:12 AM
DanH
Let’s face it, at this point it’s Alpine vs Lando Norris and if the screens don’t work it’s not going to DNF the car.
McLaren really does need the money. Even before COVID, Ron Dennis threw the company into river financially and held it under while it fought for air. While the road cars have been a so-so sales success, the F1 side floundered with no sponsors for multiple years because he refused to drop the price from Mercedes prices while the cars were blowing up and finishing last in the Constructors multiple years repaid them with peanuts. Zak Brown even had to go as extreme as selling the McLaren Technical Center and the surrounding land and pay rent to the owners to generate income.
October 20, 2022, 11:43 AM
Georgeair
I do like that Zak doesn't just collect cool and historic cars, but loads them up, ships them overseas in this case, and lets them run. At speed.
Very nice.
If anyone saw his tweet after that outing, he said something about how it drove and thanked Pato O'ward for letting him use his gloves that were in the shot.
You only have integrity once. - imprezaguy02
October 20, 2022, 01:20 PM
DanH
Getting back to Mario Andretti at Laguna Seca, his interview with Racer implies that it was a V6 Hybrid and not a V8.
McLaren did run a Mercedes for 2014. It could be the MP4/29 since I doubt Honda would bother making an engine that works for McLaren.
October 21, 2022, 07:54 AM
P250UA5
Main drawback to the races in the Americas, have to wait until the afternoon to watch live. I usually have FP1/2 going on the 55" tv in my office. Silence for now...
The Enemy's gate is down.
October 21, 2022, 02:40 PM
220-9er
Practice 1. Several other drivers getting a crack at an F-1 opportunity. Less than ten minutes in and Giovinazzi's put it into the fence already and damaged the gearbox. Not likely to get back out. A surprise but not really.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: P250UA5, 