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AUSTIN, Texas – There is a big, multi-colored billboard right in front of the Circuit of the Americas.
On the best side, the Formula 1 logo, the dates of Sting and Eminem's live shows and the logos of the Texas Longhorns and Georgia Bulldogs could be seen on a black background. On the left is a phrase that could be seen in various parts of Austin this weekend: “The Greatest Weekend Ever.”
The United States Grand Prix has been held through the college football season since COTA was added to the calendar in 2012 (except for 2022 when COVID-19 impacted Formula 1's schedule). The two sports have competed on the identical weekends in Austin, including in 2013 when Texas lost to Oklahoma State, 2015 when it beat Kansas State and 2017's time beyond regulation loss to Oklahoma State.
But this weekend's game, by which the top-ranked Longhorns beat the no.
ESPN's College GameDay can be on the town, and the media company is planning quite a few crossover games between F1 and college football this weekend, comparable to live segments from COTA's SportsCenter and the Elle Duncan Show also on site . Legendary football coach Nick Saban I drove a hot lap on Fridayand Jess Sims tested several drivers' knowledge of American college football, including Lando Norris.
It's a weekend like Formula 1 has never experienced, especially because the popularity boom.
“It's really exciting to see these two cultures mix because they're both just amazing. Iconic American college football and Formula 1 racing,” said Drew Martin, Texas Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director for External Affairs. “These are truly unique and distinctive sporting cultures and when you see them come together on a weekend like this, it doesn’t happen anywhere else in the world.”
College football game days, particularly inside the SEC, are a totally different matter.
Sure, there are the standard tailgates and ritual cheers. But Texas is doing one higher because the university is reinventing game day in Austin. Martin said, “When you come to a University of Texas football game, you will experience the best of Austin culture, starting with the live music capital of the world.”
The Longhorns perform a pregame concert at Longhorn City Limits, inspired by the town's street festival culture comparable to Bevo Boulevard. And then there's Smokey's Midway, a nod to the State Market.
“It is absolutely the best environment for football games in the country, although not traditional,” Martin added. “It’s not about your vast area and area and area of increasingly dense properties. It’s actually a huge three-ring circus.”
And when College GameDay involves town, the chaos ramps up a notch. Texas received notice over per week prematurely, but that is the fifth time in seven years the university has hosted the production. It's definitely an enormous logistical feat, says Martin, but given the relationships they've built through the years, “it's more of a known unity of what they need, what they expect, how they feel around the show “The fan base is there because we won't start the sport until 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time.”
Jess Sims interviews Lando Norris for ESPN. (via ESPN)
It's going to be a marathon day – College GameDay for 3 hours within the morning, after which the festivities begin.
“I know that Europeans particularly like college football, especially the halftime show. “It’s surprising, but we have groups from Europe that come when there’s a college football game because it extends their weekend, and they especially enjoy the marching band halftime shows,” said COTA Chairman Bobby Epstein. “And it's something we might take for granted here, but the pomp and circumstance and all the fun surrounding the college football atmosphere is something so uniquely American that we know our foreign visitors like that and am “Look out for this weekend” to enhance the general experience.”
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Between the Texas-Georgia game and Formula 1, Epstein expects “at least a quarter of a million people in downtown Austin that night” through Saturday. Martin estimates there can be over 100,000 people on the school campus in downtown Austin that evening.
F1 qualifying runs from 5:00 p.m. to six:00 p.m. CT and the school football game begins at 6:30 p.m. CT, making it a good race for those attending each sporting events. There isn’t any added pressure relating to safety or traffic management. COTA and Darrell K Royal Memorial Stadium are roughly 17.5 miles apart (for those who take toll roads). But Eminem's concert will even happen that evening.
Oscar Piastri visited the Longhorns stadium this week. (via McLaren)
Saturday's slate is full, but COTA has put together one other ticket package option for soccer fans called the “Split the Uprights Package.” Epstein said, “Saturday was sold out, mostly because of Eminem,” but there have been still spots available for Friday and Sunday. It's a mix of Friday and Sunday general admission tickets for a less expensive price of $289. According to COTA, that is cheaper than single tickets per day.
“I think most hotels have three- or four-night minimum stays,” Epstein said. “So if you're a Georgia fan, ask yourself, 'What else do I do for the rest of the weekend?' Well, you can buy Friday and Sunday. Get out on the track.”
While Martin said discussions about the package began in the spring, it came to fruition “pretty late in the method as we began to determine what the provision looked like, how we could activate it and just knowing how people were moving forward.” For There would be a lot of demand for the game.”
He added: “Texas football sells out every season and knowing we would not have individual ticket inventory for this game, arriving later in the lead up to the weekend would provide the additional opportunity for both active activities and sporting events “It was really nice to enjoy it.”
Putting together a Saturday like this requires collaboration.
“The initial reaction was something like the deep breath of a huge international F1 race and a huge, not just a small football game, but a huge national impact in this particular SEC match,” Martin said. “I believe it was an enormous deep breath of 'How will we approach this?'”
The University of Texas Athletics and the Circuit of the Americas began discussing collaboration. Some factors are beyond their control, such as the availability of restaurants and the increase in hotel prices. Martin said: “Some of those are unavoidable when you could have two major sporting events on the identical weekend.” But the challenges extend beyond the city center. Due to the sheer number of flights into the metropolitan area, air traffic control is rerouting some flight routes.
This is a significant weekend for Austin as fans from around the world flock to Texas to experience two of the biggest events on both sports' calendars. A title fight is brewing in Formula 1 as the first of the final six races of the year gets underway, and a new technical controversy is brewing at COTA. Meanwhile, the Longhorns look to continue to prove their worth and maintain their No. 1 status in their first year in the SEC.
“You can either be intimidated by it, worry about things that may or may not go mistaken, or you’ll be able to embrace it and say, 'The whole world goes to be watching Austin, Texas, the weekend of October nineteenth.'
“That’s exciting.”
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image credit : www.nytimes.com