The Formula 1 United States Grand Prix took place in Austin this past weekend, and enthusiasts and fans gathered from all over to attend the event and its associated sponsorship events.
Among these events was a gathering downtown presented by AT&T, a partner of Oracle Red Bull Racing, through the AT&T Garage at Distribution Hall in downtown Austin.
The event was free for whoever wanted to attend, and two Texas Longhorns basketball players made appearances to help promote the festivities of the weekend.
Texas Longhorns guard Jordan Pope (0) drives against Xavier Musketeers guard Dayvion McKnight (20) in the first half of the NCAA Tournament First Four game between the Xavier Musketeers and the Texas Longhorns at University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio, on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. Xavier advances with an 86-80 win over Texas, moving on to play Illinois in the first round. / Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Longtime basketball players and new Formula 1 fans, women’s point guard Rori Harmon and men’s point guard Jordan Pope, created social content as part of an NIL opportunity during this bustling weekend near their school’s campus.
The two commented on what it’s like to be connected to experiences like these through NIL.
“There’s so much to do [in Austin],” Pope said. “It’s diverse, different types of opportunities and collabs that I see are out there to do. I think it’s very interesting. Makes it a lot easier to get out there and see what you like, what you don’t like and what works for you.”
One new thing they got to try on Saturday at the AT&T Garage was a racing simulator.
“It’s kind of difficult,” Harmon said of the experience. “I don’t know how they do it in real life, but I definitely would have crashed like 20 times. Luckily, it’s just a simulator, but it was really cool.”
While the types of athletes involved in Formula 1 racing might vary greatly from the ones who will be taking the court for the Longhorns in the months to come, they came together in one place for one of the city’s most well-known events of the year.
Driver Scott Speed attended the event, as did podcasters Matt Gallagher and Tom Bellingham of the P1 with Matt and Tommy podcast about Formula 1. They filmed an episode of their podcast at Distribution Hall in front of an audience of spectators. Additionally, the Oracle Red Bull Racing car was put on display at the event too.
Pope and Harmon have embraced offseason NIL opportunities such as this one, but the number of days until they take the court for the Longhorns again is getting smaller and smaller.
Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Texas Longhorns guard Rori Harmon (3) drives against South Carolina Gamecocks guard Raven Johnson (25) during the first half of a semifinal of the women’s 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Each of the players commented on their excitement to get back on the court in front of a crowd in the first week of November.
“I’m just looking forward to the season,” Pope said. “Summer felt like it’s been going on forever. So I’m just looking forward to getting started with my new teammates, new coaching staff. It’s a brand new opportunity coming into this year.”
Harmon echoed his sentiments to describe her own feelings about the season commencing, also mentioning her team’s strong run in last season’s NCAA tournament.
“I’m just excited to play with our new team,” she said. “We have basically half the new team, majority new team, not too much experience here at the university playing for women’s basketball. But now I’m just super excited to start playing. We have high expectations too. We just came off a Final Four run, so we’re just excited to see if we can get to that.”
The women’s and men’s programs will start their seasons on Nov. 3 and 4, respectively, which is in well under a month now.