{"id":12551,"date":"2025-10-20T17:48:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T17:48:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/12551\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T17:48:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T17:48:13","slug":"inside-austins-formula-1-weekend-of-speed-celebs-and-bbq","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/12551\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Austin\u2019s Formula 1 Weekend of Speed, Celebs and BBQ"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\"rstappenRace winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing. Mark Sutton – Formula 1\/Formula 1 via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Formula 1 is back in Austin, the \u201cHome of Horsepower.\u201d Instead of riding bucking broncos, the world\u2019s fastest drivers are revving 1000 horsepower V6 engines around one of the year\u2019s trickiest tracks.<\/p>\n

During race weekend (October 17-19) in Austin, the city is plastered with F1 imagery, from posters of Lando Norris<\/a>\u2019 face alongside 6th Street to the full range of Pirelli tires that adorn the lobby of the Thompson Hotel<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the one weekend in Austin where lines around the block aren\u2019t solely reserved for BBQ restaurants. Instead, Formula 1 fanatics queue for fans zones set up around the city like, the Atlassian Williams Racing Fan Zone<\/a> where they can drive esports simulators, Lewis Hamilton<\/a>\u2019s Plus 44<\/a> store pop-up and former F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo<\/a>\u2019s Enchant\u00e9<\/a> pop-up.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Matthew McConaughey participates in the grid tour before the start of the United States Formula One Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Digital luxury lifestyle concierge service Velocity Black<\/a> is the official luxury lifestyle partner of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula 1<\/a> team, and members get access to some of the weekend\u2019s most exclusive offerings, including the team\u2019s hospitality suite in The Paddock Club<\/a>, a hot lap, garage tours, pit lane walks and a lunch at the Aston Martin House, where drivers casually walk by as you munch on brisket croquettes and local tostadas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether it be VIP hospitality, garage tours and hot lap access at F1 races, fine dining experiences or exclusive entertainment, we are committed to unlocking truly unforgettable moments across the globe,\u201d says Sylvain Langrand<\/a>, CEO of Velocity Black.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Malin Akerman and Brittany Snow attend the Uber One Rodeo. Getty Images for Uber<\/p>\n

Off the track, there was a private dinner at the iconic Franklin Barbecue<\/a> with an intimate live performance by Grammy Award-winner Gary Clark Jr<\/a>. And should members want to beat the Austin traffic, Velocity Black\u00a0 arranges helicopter transports to and from the circuit.<\/p>\n

\u201cF1 and Austin have acclimated to each other,\u201d legendary BBQ pitmaster Aaron Franklin<\/a> told Observer at a private dinner for Velocity Black members. \u201cNow, people come here specifically for F1, and are more interested in the local scene and local culture. We had the McLaren team here last night, and they\u2019re all just a bunch of really cool nerds. I love meeting people during race weekend that I wouldn\u2019t normally have the chance to meet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Roller coasters dot The Circuit Of The Americas (COTA) and it seems like the mandatory dress code is cowboy hats and boots. When cars aren\u2019t rounding the circuit, musical performances throughout the weekend include Kygo and Garth Brooks, Turnpike Troubadours, as well as local Austin talent.<\/p>\n

This year, Austin was a sprint weekend, meaning there was an extra mini-race with more points on the line for the championship battle. Track temperatures weren\u2019t the only scorching hot thing on Saturday, as the sprint race was off to a spicy start. The crowd gasped as both McLarens made contact, forcing them out of the sprint race and any chance at points. Overall, a bad day for Oscar Piastri<\/a>, currently leading the driver\u2019s championship, as he only placed P6 in qualifying, while his teammate and championship rival, Lando Norris, came in at P2.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"Glen Powell on the grid during the F1 Grand Prix of United States at Circuit of The Americas. Formula 1 via Getty Images<\/p>\n

And on race day, COTA was hot as H-E double toothpicks, but celebrities still lined the track, including Matthew McConaughey<\/a>, Glen Powell<\/a>, Malin Akerman<\/a> and Adele<\/a>. Max Verstappen<\/a> dominated, winning the race with Lando Norris coming in second and Charles LeClerc<\/a> third. There were plenty of overtakes and on-track action, but no red flags. Although the race wasn\u2019t as exciting as the sprint, it was consequential for the driver\u2019s championship, with Lando narrowing the gap to Oscar Piastri by 14 points.<\/p>\n

And as the sun set on Austin, the city was electric with bars packed with F1 fans, and private events and parties, like the Esses Magazine<\/a> one-year anniversary party with two special guests, as the Visa Cash App RB<\/a>\u00a0drivers Isack Hadjar<\/a> and Liam Lawson<\/a> made an appearance. At the One Party by Uber, a musical performance by the Zac Brown Band opened with a traditional Texas rodeo.<\/p>\n

While partaking in a BBQ dinner, another Texas tradition, Jak Crawford<\/a>, an F2 driver and Texas native told Observer, \u201cMy favorite thing about race weekend in Austin is the food. The brisket, it\u2019s so good here.\u201d While he hasn\u2019t raced here yet he says, \u201cI can\u2019t wait to drive here, it can be a really tricky circuit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\"Austin\u2019s<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Race winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing. Mark Sutton – Formula 1\/Formula 1…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12552,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[6413,6579,10589,132,134,133,5438,6859,1607,10583,10584,10586,10588,8769,5087,10587,242,10585,7845,8767,10581,8771,7891,10582,27,6208,10580],"class_list":{"0":"post-12551","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-austin","8":"tag-aaron-franklin","9":"tag-adele","10":"tag-america-united-states","11":"tag-austin","12":"tag-austin-headlines","13":"tag-austin-news","14":"tag-charles-leclerc","15":"tag-daniel-ricciardo","16":"tag-formula-1","17":"tag-gary-clark-jr","18":"tag-glen-powell","19":"tag-isack-hadjar","20":"tag-jak-crawford","21":"tag-lando-norris","22":"tag-lewis-hamilton","23":"tag-liam-lawson","24":"tag-lifestyle","25":"tag-malin-akerman","26":"tag-matthew-mcconaughey","27":"tag-max-verstappen","28":"tag-nightlife-dining","29":"tag-oscar-piastri","30":"tag-parties","31":"tag-sylvain-langrand","32":"tag-texas","33":"tag-travel","34":"tag-travel-to-austin"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12551","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12551"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12551\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12551"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12551"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12551"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}