This weekend, Circuit of the Americas ( COTA ) in Austin, Texas hosts Formula 1! COTA has become a driver’s favorite as its design borrows elements from the world’s best circuits and puts them together in the Austin countryside. It is also one of four circuits on the F1 calendar that are run counterclockwise. Over the years the racing surface has developed bumps that can make car setup tricky. Once a fledgling event, COTA has gained massive fan popularity over the years as music, barbecue, and racing are expected to bring 400,000 spectators to the track over the weekend. In 2023 the event is also a Sprint weekend.
Having locked up both the Constructor and Driver championships, attention now turns to clinching second in the drivers’ championship with a struggling Sergio Perez as a resurgent Lewis Hamilton draws closer. From there attention turns to the AplhaTauri side of the garage where Daniel Ricciardo makes his highly-anticipated return following 5 admirable performances by Liam Lawson. AlphaTauri should see one car in the points and other just outside those positions.
Elsewhere on the grid, look for this to be a general ranking of team performance coming into the race weekend:
1. Red Bull
2. Mercedes
3. McLaren
4. Ferrari
5. Aston Martin
6. Alpine
7. Williams
8. AlphaTauri
9. Haas
10. Alpha Romeo
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US TV SCHEDULE
Friday, October 20:
Practice 1 – 1.25PM – ESPN2
Qualifying – 4.55PM – ESPN2
Ted’s Qualifying Notebook – 7.30PM – ESPN3
Saturday, October 21:
Sprint Shootout – 1.25PM – ESPNEWS/ESPN+
Sprint Race – 5.55PM – ESPNEWS/ESPN+
Ted’s Sprint Notebook – 7.30PM – ESPN3
Sunday, October 22:
Countdown to Austin – 2PM – ESPN3/Social
U.S. Grand Prix – 1.30PM-5PM – ABC/ESPN+
Checkered Flag – 5PM – ESPN3
Ted’s Race Notebook – 6PM – ESPN3
Race (re-air) – 8.30PM – ESPN2
Race (re-air) – 11PM –
ESPNEWS
CIRCUIT INFORMATION
Lap data
Lap length: 5.513km (3.426 miles)
Race laps: 56
Race distance: 308.728km (191.835 miles)
Pole position: Right-hand side of the track
Lap record*: 1’37.392 by Lewis Hamilton, 2018
Fastest lap: 1’32.237 by Lewis Hamilton, 2018
Maximum speed: 314kph (195.11 mph)
DRS
zone/s (race): Pit straight and longest straight
Distance from grid to turn one: 280m
Car performance
Full throttle: 49%
Longest flat-out section: 1090m
Downforce level: Medium
Gear changes per lap: 54
Fuel use per lap: 1.8kg
Time penalty per lap of fuel: 0.072s
Strategy
Quickest complete pit stop in 2013: 23.537s by Red Bull (see full list)
2023 tyres: Hard (C2), Medium (C3), Soft (C4) (2022:Hard (C2), Medium (C3), Soft (C4))
*Fastest lap set during a Grand Prix
2022 RESULTS
Race Info.
Pole: Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari, 1:34.356
Race laps: 56
Fast race lap: George Russell, Mercedes, 1:38.788
Podium
1. Max Verstappen – Red Bull
2. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
3. Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
CURRENT STANDINGS
TRACK MAP AND VIDEO
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