Austin Pit Stop - May 18, 2012

Today marks the official six month mark until the Inaugural Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas. What better way to celebrate than with a ton of news about motorsports and Austin!

// Austin News

Picture of the Ferrari F2001 on display by Austin Auto ShowThe 2012 Austin Auto Show is this weekend at the Austin Convention Center. Peruse the latest offerings from auto manufacturers and enjoy some extra perks, like the "Sim-Zilla" racing simulator by Ford (watch a video on their Facebook page here) and two Formula 1 show cars on display - a Ferrari F2001 that was driven by Michael Schumacher and the Williams FW33 with updated livery.

Tickets are $7 and the show runs Friday through Sunday from 10AM-10PM except on Sunday, when it ends at 6:00PM.

Formula Expo continues to add to their roster, with representatives from Williams and Lotus F1 Teams announced to attend. In addition to a "Pit Stop Challenge" and simulators, seven historic Formula One cars will be on display.

Formula Expo is June 16-17, also at the Austin Convention Center, and ticket packages range from $11.25-$50.00 and are on sale now.

// COTA News

The Austin American-Statesman reports Austin is "on track" for our November F1 race, shares a construction update and continues to keep public interest in mind while requesting access to records in the ongoing court case between Tavo Hellmund and Circuit of The Americas.

Racing towards the finish line for ticket prices, COTA sent out a pricing survey to gauge attendees' preferences in seats and understand what they are expecting to spend.

// F1 News

Maldonado carries his cousin away from the Williams Garage. Source: TwitterShortly after Pastor Maldonado's epic win at the Spanish Grand Prix last weekend, a fire broke out in the Williams F1 Team garage. Initial reports indicated members of various teams were affected and taken by care flight for medical attention. Perhaps this heroic photo of Maldonado carrying his cousin captured the events of the day best. Read more on what is known about the fire in this Williams Press Release.

American Alexander Rossi made us proud during his run at Friday practice of the Spanish GP. You can read the full report here, and here is what Rossi had to say about the experience:

″I am very pleased with how this morning's session went. We completed the program the team had set and I acclimatised quickly to the step up to F1. This isn't my first time working with the team, I already have a day at the Abu Dhbai young driver test last year under my belt, but coming into a full race weekend is a very different proposition to the young driver test. Today wasn't about setting the quickest lap I could - there may have been another seven or eight tenths to be found but the main thing today was to learn as much as I could, contribute by following the plan, give the engineers clear, concise feedback, and not make any mistakes. That's what we did so I think it's been pretty much as good as it could have been.″

But we're also excited that Conor Daly, American driver and winner of last weekend's GP3 round two race in Barcelona, jumped in a Force India car this week for data aero mapping. Read more here.

The F1 teams and drivers are currently preparing for the next race on the F1 2012 calendar, the Grand Prix De Monaco in Monte Carlo. Stay tuned as we follow them to racing's Most Glamorous Race of the Season.

// Moto News

Yesterday the Twitterverse was chatting about MotoGP Champion Casey Stoner and his plan to retire at the end of the MotoGP season, citing his disappointment in the direction of the series. Today Autosport published an interview with the "boss of the rights holders to the MotoGP World Championship," Carmelo Ezpeleta. In the interview, there is a brief hint that during this month "we will know more" about the 10 year agreement between MotoGP and Kevin Schwantz in regards to COTA.

// Carroll Shelby (Jan 11, 1923 - May 10, 2012)

Carroll Shelby accepts the first-place trophy after winning the 200-mile International Grand Prix on April 3, 1960, at the Riverside Raceway in California. Associated Press.Carroll Shelby, legendary racer, Texan, chili-lover and father of the iconic Shelby Cobras and Mustangs, passed away last Thursday in Dallas, Texas.

Shelby won numerous races, including the 1959 24 Hours of LeMans and three national sports-car championships in the US. Driving a supercharged, specifically-modified Austin-Healey 100S he set 16 US and international speed records and was named Sports Illustrated "Driver of the Year" in 1956 and 1957. Unfortunately, heart complications forced him to retire from racing in 1960, so he transformed his passion for racing cars into building them.

In 1962 he built the first Shelby Cobra, the CSX2000, and in 1963 put his fleet of Cobras up against Ferraris, Porsches and Jaguars in Europe.

In the book The Cobra-Ferrari Wars 1963-1965, Shelby once said:

We knew, plus or minus, what capabilites of the Ferrari were, and we knew we would beat it. I knew that, if I could get the Daytona coupe, Ferrari wouldn't be in business.

Read more in this tribute, "A Life Well Lived."

Ron Howard Puts F1 Rivalry on Screen

(All images by Ron Howard, via @realRonHoward)

The Nurburgring Nordschleife. A 14.189 mile purpose-built racing circuit just south of Cologne, in West-Central Germany. The clockwise loop, with scenic vistas of the Eifel Mountains and the Nurburg castle, would be a perfectly lovely route for a Sunday drive with your family. The dog. A picnic. Deep sigh.

A picnic in a place where between 1928 and 2010, the sum of 68 racing drivers has been killed conquering its corners.

Picture... Exiting the pits, only a lap into the race (bear in mind, one lap of the North 'Ring is equal to roughly four or five laps of a modern circuit), Austrian world champion driver Niki Lauda worked to get heat into his Ferrari's new slicks, after swapping from grooved wet tires. Even though he led the championship at this point, he was running a disappointing 10th place after a slow, wheel spinning start on the wet track, trailing the race's pole sitter,  Brit James Hunt.

Upshift, upshift, upshift, full throttle. Brake hard, clutch, blip, downshift. Snap snap snap. In 1976, Formula 1 cars weren't the nanometer perfect technologically terrifying examples of humanity's mastery of physics that they are today. They were hungry, wild and unusually angry animals, barely contained within four wheels. Mechanical pet wolverines.

It's more a sweeping kink than an actual corner. In Gran Turismo 5 you can take it flat out. Supposedly, real racing drivers do, too. The difference between a video game, however realistic, and real life, is that you can't get hurt playing with pixels. But the difference between a normal person playing a video game and a racing driver taking a circuit flat out is that the possibility of pain and death don't factor into the racing driver's conscious mind. They just push. Faster than you can go in real life, and probably faster than you can go in your high-def virtual reality.

And then it happens, and there's nothing you can possibly do to prevent it. Heading into the Bergwerk complex, Niki Lauda's Ferrari snapped around, slammed into the Armco crash barrier, and ricocheted back onto the circuit directly into to the path of hard charging Brett Lunger. Both cars exploded into a firestorm.

Niki Lauda was trapped in the flame engulfed 800 degree cockpit for almost a minute.

Other cars encountered the scene, and Lunger, freed from the wreckage of his Surtees-Ford, along with drivers Artuto Merzario, Guy Edwards and Harald Ertl scrambled to save Lauda's life. It would be more than two full minutes before befuddled race marshals would be able to send trauma support. Conscious, but grievously injured, Niki Lauda was transported to a hospital in nearby Adenau to stabilize his condition, then to long-term care in Manheim, where he slipped into a coma for five days.

Scorched lungs. Disfigured body. Shattered psyche. Most people do not survive trauma of this magnitude.

Six weeks later, he was in the cockpit of a new Ferrari, battling his friend James Hunt for the 1976 Formula 1 World Championship, who had closed the gap during his convalescence.

And this is where the story gets interesting...

Have you seen Grand Theft Auto? Yes, it's a movie, too. It came out in 1977, the same year as Star Wars and a year after (spoiler alert) Niki Lauda lost the championship to James Hunt, after lodging the most improbable almost-comeback in the history of motorsports. Roger Corman produced it. Ron "Opie" Howard wrote, directed and starred in it. It's in Netflix's "Watch It Now" list, for the moment at least. You should do that. Watch it now, that is. It's a goofy Saturday afternoon movie with some well executed banter and even better car chases. I'd go so far as to rate it equal to Smokey and the Bandit, also a product of 1977.

In synopsis, it's the story of a starstruck couple, desperately in love, who decide to elope to Vegas. They are pursued cross-country, Kowalski-style, by the father of the would-be bride and the throngs of cards, cads and characters promised a $25,000 bounty for catching them and preventing the unapproved nuptials. It's a chase movie. Simple.

So when Howard announced he was making a movie called Rush about Lauda and Hunt, it made sense within this context of his entire filmography. It's also a chase. Albeit a multi-million, continent spanning opus rather than a homebrew film project by a first time director with a budget smaller than what it probably costs to deliver the uniforms for the catering crew of the second unit for Rush.

Rush will be released next year. It stars The Avengers' Chris Hemsworth (Thor) as Hunt and Daniel Bruhl, probably best known as Zoller from Inglorious Basterds, as Lauda. It will feature actual, period perfect racing cars like the Ferrari 312-T2 and the fantastically bizarre Tyrell p34, driving on the actual Nurburgring. Racing geeks will squeal and get the vapors.

Can you, racing geek, take your significant other to this film, or will you be sneaking to a matinee on a suspiciously long Tuesday lunch break? And can you, non-racing geek, stomach an entire feature film on the subject, knowing full well the horrors preciously foisted upon unsuspecting ticket holders? Driven... cold shudders. Here's a test.  After you finish The Descendents or the second season of Downton Abbey, suggest Senna as your next cinematic couch date. Put the baby to bed, open that $6 bottle of wine you've been hoarding, and prepare to test the waters. Yes, we at The Austin Grand Prix harp on the excellence of this documentary day in and day out. But to introduce someone who might be put off Formula 1 due to its occasion insularity to the real human drama of racing, this is your in. Forget Frankenheimer's Grand Prix; it's nothing more than hardcore car porn disguised as cinema. Senna is more 50 Shades of Grey, or whatever it is my wife is hiding on her Kindle these days. It has depth. And porn.

Did it work? OK. Time for Phase Two. Rewatch A Dangerous Mind, Cinderella Man, Apollo 13, The Paper (so under appreciated, that one), Frost/Nixon, Parenthood, and/or Willow, if you swing that way. Ronnie can tell a compelling story, no? Elicit convincing and utterly human performances from his actors, no? And consider his tutelage. As a boy, he absorbed the humanism of no less than Andy Griffith, and later essentially apprenticed under Spielberg and Lucas (who not only once worked for Carroll Shelby, but also produced several short films on the northern California racing scene in the late 1960s, and has threatened, if you will, to produce and/or direct a film about the Ford vs Ferrari duels of Le Mans). Ron Howard makes some of the best modern Hollywood flicks going. Not all of them are great art, but they are all based in human drama and they are all eminently watchable. Except for those ridiculous Tom Hanks as a geekier version of Indiana Jones fighting an albino masochistic priest, or whatever the hell that was.

At this point, you have the leverage to say, convincingly, "You know, I realize you're maybe not that into Formula 1, but Ron Howard has this movie with that hunk/aweseome dude from The Avengers/Cabin In the Woods/Star Trek, etc. and I think you'd really like it. It's Ron Howard!" If you're swaying a male friend, Rush also stars Olivia Wilde. If you live in Austin or a city that is home to an Alamo Drafthouse, promise a drink or six. If your friend/significant other has no interest in racing whatsoever, lie and tell them it has Neil Peart's best drum solo ever. You can do it.

That was bait. These, however, are the insidious hooks... this story that is too fantastical to be real or even based in reality, these characters that exhibit such awe-inspiring resiliency, or monstrous flaws but who remain sympathetic to our sensibilities... that's how you capture a new F1 fan. Is that Ron Howard's intent? Probably not. He's been nabbed frequently enough by the likes of Will Buxton for fans to realize he's in it for the story, even though he is admittedly a racing fan. He's not an apostle of the Temple of Speed. His intent is to tell a great story and put images on a screen that will, with regard to racing, melt your apathy, heighten your fanaticism, or viscerally engage you to the degree that you become fully invested in the story and its characters, and leave the theater with a changed emotional state. It's the goal of all filmmakers. He hopes. We hope. Beyond that however, as long-time fans of the sport, to know that in 2013 there will be an Oscar contending film about one of our greatest heroes, and one of our greatest anti-heroes (as James Hunt was of equal depth, wit, and spirit, plus he once slept with more than 30 British Airways air hostesses prior to the '76 Japanese Grand Prix, during an epic binge that would have forced Hunter S. Thompson to tap out), it makes us excited to be the Apostles of the Temple of Speed. It's validation beyond the often insular realm we inhabit on Sunday mornings.

Cinema relies on great stories and compelling characters. This particular confluence of story and character is perfect fodder for film. But Formula 1 is rife with great stories and compelling characters. Nuvolari, Clark, Stewart, Prost. There's a depth of color in those characters that I don't think exists in most other walks of life. They blend the devil may care bravado of a rogue with the focused stoicism of a monk. And the battles. The crashes. The passes. The season after season of slugging to finally emerge victorious. It's amazing and perplexing to me that there aren't really any great films about racing. They're either too Hollywood, a la Days of Thunder, to truly capture the essence of the sport, or too up their own arse, as the aforementioned Grand Prix (although it is lovely to look at, and there's James Garner being typically, laconically badass and Lucille Bluth all meee-yow foxy). I'm hopeful that Rush hits the sweet spot between artistry and spectacle, fact and fiction, and moments of honest, raw emotion and fingernail-bending racing scenes. This could be the film that breaks F1 into the modern mainstream by drawing from its almost unbelievable past.

Do us proud, Ron. Better yet, do Niki and James proud. They deserve it.

American Conor Daly To Test Force India F1 Car

American GP3 driver Conor Daly gets fitted in the Sahara Force India VJM05, May 15th, 2012

Coming off of a spectacular win in the GP3 series at Barcelona, American racer Conor Daly is getting his chance to join the Formula 1 club as the Sahara Force India team announced that Conor will be testing some car configurations tomorrow in England.  Conor will be helping Force India test out various aerodynamic options and collecting data as they look to improve the VJM05 car for the 2012 season.

Yesterday, Conor was fitted for a seat in preparation for Thursday's test and had the following to say about the opportunity:

Someone seriouisly might have to pinch or kick me because I feel like I'm dreaming! So thankful for this opportunity.

Over the weekend, Conor secured his first win for the Lotus GP team at the Barcelona GP3 Series race, garnering the attention of many in the Formula 1 scene, including Stefano Domenicali, the Ferrari team principal, and former F1 world champion and American driver, Mario Andretti, who tweeted:

Conor's performance in the GP3 series has proven he is a great fit for the sport, and entering as a testing role for an up-and-coming team like Force India will be a great match for him.  With Alexander Rossi testing with the Caterham F1 Team and now Conor Daly's position with Force India, evidence is mounting that the teams are keen to gain American eyes on their cars.  It could be just a matter of months before we see one of these talented Americans on the grid for the United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas.

Race Review: Spanish Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso, Ferrari and Kimi Raikkonen, Lotus GP hold up Pastor Maldonado, Williams F1 Team as he celebrates on the podium after winning the race. Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain. 13th May 2012. World Copyright: Andrew Ferraro/LAT Allow me to get this out of the way before we start on the race review: What kind of ridiculous shenanigan is that for the FIA stewards to punish McLaren by placing Hamilton at the very back of the grid?! It pains me to see Hamilton qualified for pole and then, BAM!, ended up on the last spot on the grid. This whole situation got me all wound up heading into Race day. I have to admit it was great to see a new driver taking pole, and Maldonado was certainly in top form, but I couldn't help but wonder how the race would have turned out if Hamilton was on pole. And on the note of qualifying, I wonder if more teams will start bailing out of Q3 to save tyres.

Onward with the Race day happenings. It was definitely nice to see another shakeup on the line up, top teams like Red Bull, McLaren were nowhere to be found while Williams and Lotus were right at the top sandwiching a home crowd-pleasing Ferrari. The Ferrari looked to be back on winning form with Alonso on the P2. Alonso did not disappoint as he nabbed the lead from Maldonado right from the start and down Turn 1.

It's not a proper race if there was no drama on the race track. For the Spanish Grand Prix, that drama came in the form of Schumacher rear-ending Senna, resulting in an early exit for both. I hate to say it, but I think Schumacher's attempt to revive his glory days is a futile effort.

There were many great wheel-to-wheel battles and overtaking throughout the race, my favorite was Kobayashi deep-diving to make an inside pass on Button on Lap33. However, the MVP of the race, on overtaking and on doing the impossible, belongs to Hamilton. Hamilton never gave up despite the situation he found himself in, and pulling a jump of 16 positions to land on 8th from his starting position of 24th. That's not even considering the strange pit stop that he had. McLaren needs to really get their act together; their pit stops actually make me nervous for their drivers. In contrast, the Ferrari pit stops were beautifully slick and error-free.

After 66 laps and many nail-biting moments, Maldonado got the job done and took home the trophy for the Spanish Grand Prix. Fantastic to see a new winner, and the 1st Venezuelan driver at that! I am really loving how every race has yet another new winner. I'm calling it now - Hamilton to win Monaco!

Action on the track aside, I am sad to report no one has made it onto my Best Post-race hair list this time around. I did notice that Raikkonen got a much-needed haircut, and Button started growing some facial hair, in case anyone is keep track. Did anyone ever notice the race girls’ outfits? I haven't seen any that's memorable, the Spanish Grand Prix one was underwhelming. I look forward to a more glamorous version of the outfit at Monaco. Speaking of Monaco, the Monaco track is one of my favorite, there's just something special about a street circuit. Mark your calendars and get ready for another exciting race on the weekend of 5/25 at Monaco!

Race Preview: Spanish Grand Prix

Spanish flag and GP artwork by PJ Tierney. Click on the photo to read more about his work!Catalunya, Spain, Alonso, Victory. Words that belong together. Or rather, words that the Ferrari team must be whispering loudly as they prepare for this weekend's race at Circuit de Catalunya.

After waiting for three weeks, I am so ready for a race weekend. With Red Bull finally getting back to the top podium spot and the herculean comeback effort from The Iceman in the Bahrain race, the musical chair of "Who will win this race?" continues amongst the top contenders. Will this be the race that Webber nudges past the consistent 4th place? Will McLaren team gets the pit stops right this race around (they better!)? Will the new nose on the McLaren cars bring new competitiveness for Hamilton and Button? Will tyres strategy come into play as early as qualifying? Will Lotus team continue to hustle for top spots? Will the Spaniard be victorious? Will we see Rosberg's almost-shampoo-commercial-worthy resilient Post-Race hair? These are the questions I want answers to, in the next few days. The Spanish Grand Prix weekend cannot come soon enough!

Austin Pit Stop - May 5, 2012

Another bustling news week in Austin, Texas. Let's jump right in.

// Tour with Tilke

Very early in the week we shared the story and photos from our on-track tour with Tilke Engineering out at Circuit of The Americas on April 20. In case you missed it, it's here.

// Drag Racing, Hotels and Asphalt, Oh My!

On Monday, Alexis DeJoria, Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry Nitro Funny Car Driver and daughter of John Paul DeJoria, held a press opportunity at the circuit. The Austin American-Statesman was in attendance and spoke to Alexis about her hopes to one day race at COTA.

On Tuesday, COTA announced their partnership with Austin-based Hotels For Hope and the initiative to donate $2 of every hotel room reservation during the November F1 race to two Austin charities, Partners in Education and Boys & Girls Clubs of Austin. 

An aerial photo of COTA by Lance Armstrong 5/2/12The following day, we got the nitty gritty details of the composition and detailed work that goes into the newest development at the circuit - the asphalt. You can start to see the new layer very well in this photo that Lance Armstrong tweeted on Wednesday.

// Not All Green Pastures

On Friday, Autoweek took a closer look at the executive makeup of COTA and the PSL pricing strategy. Today, the promoter of the Canadian Grand Prix shared his hesitations of both US races:

I am one of the skeptics who is not convinced that (Austin) is going to happen this year and I am more than skeptical about New Jersey.

He insisted it was not out of fear, but instead thought three North American races would be good for the sport, from a "visibility standpoint."

// An American Return to F1

Alexander Rossi on FOX Austin News 5/4/12Next weekend we'll witness the first American to participate in a Grand Prix weekend in almost five years as Caterham test driver Alexander Rossi will replace Heikki Kovalainen in Friday's practice session in Spain. Austinites were treated to an exclusive interview with Alexander on FOX Austin news last night. The "Friday Sports Extra" included on-screen interviews with Mr. Rossi, Austin-based motorsports commentator Jonathan Green and COTA President Steve Sexton while teaching Austinites about Formula 1 and COTA.

Alexander said:

America has produced some of the best athletes in the world and there's no reason why we can't compete in Formula 1.

By being the test driver for Caterham F1 and having the opportunity to be part of the team going to Austin and being in the American presence for the return of Formula 1 to the States is phenomenal for me. It's a fantastic opportunity to kinda bring, ya know, the love and support and passion that America has back to Formula 1.

We need an American driver in the [F1] series so Americans have someone to get behind and fully support and on top of that we need an American team.

I hope that not only am I able to get into Formula 1 but in the near future there will be more than one American Formula 1 driver.

// More Details on Tickets

The men behind a new Austin-based podcast for gearheads, Speed City Podcast, sat down with COTA VP of Sales, Todd Fleming. Jon and Les spoke with Todd about RV accommodations, general admission tickets, transportation in and out of the circuit and more. Great news, as it confirms that 3-day general admission prices for the November F1 race will be comparable to an Austin City Limits Festival 3-day ticket, of between $150-200.

Here are some highlights from the 45 minute podcast:

RV Spots - still working out exactly how many; will work similar to PSLs; people own a slip for up to 15 years; annual payment required; ability to stay overnight; 70-80 slips from initial outset with opportunity to expand in surrounding land like NASCAR offers; RV parking between T 11 & 12 (DRS zone) with abilities to see T 6-11.

General Admission Tickets - Individual ticket sales will start in less than 30 days, or the beginning of June. General seating will include uncovered grandstands, bleacher style seats; berm seating throughout but specifically on the east of the circuit in T 5-10; near the Grand Plaza between T 16-18; a large grassy knoll between T 17-18.

PSL Preference - If you put down $100 for PSLs but decided not to move forward, Todd suggests you leave it down because you will have access to the reserved and general admission grandstand tickets before the general public. Meaning, grandstand seating which is not sold to PSL holders will be pre-sold to those who put a $100 deposit down, and then will go on sale to the general public. Again, this should all take place in the next 30 days according to the interview. Todd went on to explain that PSLs help fund and maintain the facility; help COTA garner other races & extend the contracts with the race series that we already have. That's what the PSL is in place for; hence why PSL sales are important.

Under 200 days to go now until the Formula 1 United Stated Grand Prix in Austin! Stay tuned as we inch closer to the November race.