Track Announcement - "Circuit of The Americas" Unveiled

  • Thread starter RACECAR
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I can see the microscope or vacuum cleaner looks of this configuration. For a play on words, this track really puts your racing skills under the microscope. Unlike a vacuum cleaner, this track doesn't suck. I'd say microscope if I had to choose. It's been some... ten+ years since I last remember using a microscope.
 
Seeing as this is yet another series under the FIA, what's the possibility of the WTCC making a visit here? There was some speculation that they were looking to race in the US, perhaps this track could be the one?
 
A friend brought this track tonight and it made me wonder, would this be the only built-for-F1 circuit in North America after Villeneuve? Or were there others like Mosport that were built to house a F1 race?
 
McLaren
A friend brought this track tonight and it made me wonder, would this be the only built-for-F1 circuit in North America after Villeneuve? Or were there others like Mosport that were built to house a F1 race?
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Villeneuve is more or less a road course, I guess semi-permanent would be the best term for it(basically like Albert Park).

As for the question, I know Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez hosted the Mexican Grand Prix the same year it opened, no clue if it was build specially for it though.
 
Tilke has really lost his touch. The layout just looks... wrong, like it has no flow or rythm to it at all. Like it has too many turns, an excessively long straight, and is trying to be too many tracks at once.

From the maps, that new track in India has the same problems minus the last one.
 
Both circuits - and Sochi, too - were developed in conjunction with the teams. It's a myth that "flow" is conductive to good racing.
 
interludes
It's a myth that "flow" is conductive to good racing.
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Huh? Who said anything about the flow of a track having anything to do with the racing?
At least to me, the flow of a track refers to the racing line and how easy it is to get into a rhythm. The tracks with the best "flow" usually have the most natural corner combinations, where the racing line isn't too awkward. Thats not to say a circuit with flow is always easy though. And a circuit can lack flow and still be a good circuit.
To me, an example of flow is the Hungaroring, driving this track in racing games is quite easy to get into a rhythm. An example of a track with terrible flow is something like Valencia or Singapore, right-angle corners and stop-start style lines.
 
Korea is also an awkward track, the lines and braking points are at "un-natural" places. There are a couple of sections which have a nice little flow, more than Singapore does. I actually find a pretty good rhythm at Korea in F12010, but I wouldn't say it has very good flow.
Its difficult to tell if Austin will have a good flow, but looking at the Turn 3-9 section it gives the impression of a good flow falling into a frustrating braking area at turn 7. Like it builds up to a grand corner a little like the Esses at Suzuka building up to Dunlop, but falls short with turn 7 forcing you to slow down.
Turn 13-15 also looks quite awkward.
Without knowing the final elevations and actually driving the track myself, I can't really tell what the flow is like. It looks like a difficult track to get right everytime and should be a challenge.
 
12-15 is based on the stadium section of Hockenheim. It's intended to be a spectator-friendly zone. 12 appears to be a replica of Agipkurve, but tightened slightly (possibly to make it harder to take at full throttle on worn rubber; it's a Pirelli-friendly bend). It's a little bit difficult to tell because of the angle the projected elevations are shown from, but 13-15 looks like it actually climbs a hill, Rallye Monte Carlo style.

Also, it appears that Tilke's m.o. of late is to create a circuit with a particular rhythm to it, then throw in one or two critical corners that disrupt that rhythm in the hopes of forcing drivers to run a compromised setup. It's particularly in South Korea, where the three sectors of the circuit are all so distinctly different to one another that there is no one perfect setup for the entire lap. The best all-round setup isn't as good as picking a setup that will favour two of the three sectors at the expense of the third. Tilke seems to be trying to force overtaking by giving drivers a choice of setup: either go hell for leather in two of them and suffer in the third, or negate the effects by running a jack-of-all-trades-and-master-of-none that limits optimal performance but tries to catch those who favoured the two-out-of-three approach. Whether or not it's working is debatable, since the trend in Formula 1 is that once someone does something (like running soft tyres in Q3), then everyone does it.
 
Actually, Tilke's MO seems to be "draw it without thinking of anything at all beforehand". This leads to a jarring course with lots of abrupt, angular corners, which ends up being neither slow nor fast. You have things like the aforementioned angular turns, plus hairpins placed right between two super-fast sections. And of course, it's cobbled together from bits of at least three tracks, if not more. In the end, it's not Austin, it's a hybrid of Hockenheim, Istanbul, and Silverstone.

It's also kind of hard to believe that, in the third-larget country in the world, there wasn't ONE single track capable of holding an F1 race... especially since the Indy road course was designed, just a few years ago, specifically for F1 (as far as I know).

I don't know what the FIA standards are but they have to be pretty stupid if that's true. Do the current standards say a track has to have at least 20 turns and be designed by someone called Tilke?
 
^Its not that there was a requirement for a new track. Its that the other circuits don't have the money or interest in holding the race. There's also limits to tracks like Laguna Seca with regards to run-off and the need to spend a lot of money upgrading the facilities.

Its not as simple as simply turning up to the track and racing. If someone injected a good deal of money into Laguna Seca and paid for the race, it would be there. They haven't, so it isn't, same applies to any other circuit in America - Indy included.
 
Yes, the double-hairpin at turns nine and ten of Indy Road truly is epic.

At least the double hairpins at Austin are designed to be replicas of Hockenheim and created with a spectator-friendly stadium section in mind.
 
This track confuses me... I cant see myself being able to navigate it as well as ive navigated Laguna Seca, Infineon, or Thunderhill (CA Circuit, holds the 25 Hours of Thunderhill in the SCCA). They seem to have a pattern. In my opinion, Tilke designs tracks with rulers...
 
hawkeye122
This track confuses me... I cant see myself being able to navigate it as well as ive navigated Laguna Seca, Infineon, or Thunderhill (CA Circuit, holds the 25 Hours of Thunderhill in the SCCA). They seem to have a pattern. In my opinion, Tilke designs tracks with rulers...
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Not with Austin, he used copy/paste instead.:lol:
 
Rossticles
So many people hating the track over a year before a race is to be held there. Why?
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I'm not hating on it, it's just a mere observation. It's impossible to judge how it will be until P1 on*insert USGP date here*.
 
Nothing wrong with being realistic at times. Bernie has a long history of jacking tracks around ask Indy and Turkey about that. Sure a lot of local and area tracks are surviving with a couple of events each month. However NONE of those tracks are saddled with the heavy debt load and start up cost the new track will have. If Bernie pulls a Bernie after the initial contract expires it WILL put the track under a heavy financial strain especially if there is a late summer date for the USGP and the crowds do not hit estimates. Which could happen if gas prices continue near their current levels and the economy doesn't improve before that time.
 
ncrdbl1
Nothing wrong with being realistic at times. Bernie has a long history of jacking tracks around ask Indy and Turkey about that. Sure a lot of local and area tracks are surviving with a couple of events each month. However NONE of those tracks are saddled with the heavy debt load and start up cost the new track will have. If Bernie pulls a Bernie after the initial contract expires it WILL put the track under a heavy financial strain especially if there is a late summer date for the USGP and the crowds do not hit estimates. Which could happen if gas prices continue near their current levels and the economy doesn't improve before that time.
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Again, you resurface with your massive crystal ball... Of course Bernie wants more money, he's a businessman. Most businessmen/woman try to renegotiate better terms for themselves. As for Indy, the road course was terrible and the 2005 USGP couldn't have helped. As for Turkey, the spectator numbers are so low, it's no surprise they aren't willing to pay more... As for gas prices, I always find it so funny hearing Americans moan about the price of gas, despite it being a third of the price it is where I'm originally from.

There is a lot of interest in the new track, and it is in good hands. Tavo Hellmund lives for motorsports. You're not being realistic. You're being overly pessimistic.
 
Justin
I'm not hating on it, it's just a mere observation. It's impossible to judge how it will be until P1 on*insert USGP date here*.
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That statement wasn't directed at anyone. It just seems like most people here in the States are saying "Why couldn't it be here/there?" and criticizing the track instead of being happy F1 is coming back to the US. I don't know if my prideful Texas ways are coming out in being happy for it, but I'm quite certain I would be just as happy if the track were anywhere else.
 
ncrdbl1
If Bernie pulls a Bernie after the initial contract expires it WILL put the track under a heavy financial strain especially if there is a late summer date for the USGP and the crowds do not hit estimates. Which could happen if gas prices continue near their current levels and the economy doesn't improve before that time.
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Gas prices are not going to affect this track.

And even if Bernie "pulls a Bernie", the MotoGP has a 10-year contract with the track, so the track is going to get its money b/c like Hellmund, Texas-born MotoGP riders Schwantz & Spies have pressured to have the track as a MotoGP event. Schwantz has been working extensively with this track to make sure the MotoGP does well.
 
ncrdbl1
Nothing wrong with being realistic at times. Bernie has a long history of jacking tracks around ask Indy and Turkey about that. Sure a lot of local and area tracks are surviving with a couple of events each month. However NONE of those tracks are saddled with the heavy debt load and start up cost the new track will have. If Bernie pulls a Bernie after the initial contract expires it WILL put the track under a heavy financial strain especially if there is a late summer date for the USGP and the crowds do not hit estimates. Which could happen if gas prices continue near their current levels and the economy doesn't improve before that time.
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I honestly think it's idiotic to compare Indy with Austin. As far as I know the reasons as to why Indy didn't re-up are still unknown. I'm sure part of it was asking for money but I wouldn't be shocked to hear that Bernie wanted various upgrades to the track(it's not unheard of), especially in the shadow of 2005.

As for gas prices and the economy, the US actually has very low gas prices compared to Europe which doesn't seem to have a problem selling tickets. If they can manage to get people to pay hundreds to sit outside the stadium at the Superbowl they can sell seats at this track.
 
McLaren
Gas prices are not going to affect this track.

And even if Bernie "pulls a Bernie", the MotoGP has a 10-year contract with the track, so the track is going to get its money b/c like Hellmund, Texas-born MotoGP riders Schwantz & Spies have pressured to have the track as a MotoGP event. Schwantz has been working extensively with this track to make sure the MotoGP does well.
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Spies was actually born in Tennessee. He did his young motor racing in Texas and that's where he gained fame. It's a common mistake. I thought he was Texan as well for a long time. His Lone Star branding on his helmet is a bit misleading, but I'm not complaining. I'm a huge fan of Elbowz.
 
Rossticles
Spies was actually born in Tennessee. He did his young motor racing in Texas and that's where he gained fame. It's a common mistake. I thought he was Texan as well for a long time. His Lone Star branding on his helmet is a bit misleading, but I'm not complaining. I'm a huge fan of Elbowz.
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My apologies, then. The article I had read had listed that 2 of the 3 Americans in MotoGP were Texans & both were listed as reasons for the series to run in Austin.

Regardless, next year will be a good time to be a motorsport enthusiast in Tx. :D
Now if they would just release what ticket prices are estimated to go for.
 
It's all good. I just thought I would share what I recently learned. He and his family moved to Texas when he was under 5 years old. That's Texan enough for me. 👍
 

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