COTA Officials: Texas Formula 1 Race Is A Go
Austin, Texas’s on-again, off-again 2012 date with Formula 1 appears to be back on again.
Officials of the Circuit of The Americas, the road circuit being built near Austin, announced Wednesday that they have reached an agreement with Formula One Management that ensures the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix remains on the FIA Formula 1 World Championship race calendar.
Red McCombs, chairman of McCombs Enterprises and founding partner of Circuit of The Americas, stated said that Bernie Ecclestone, CEO of Formula One Management and Formula One Administration, received a check for sanctioning fees for the race on Wednesday.
A statement from COTA and McCombs, said, “We want to thank the fans supporting us, the local officials and businesses that have encouraged us, the State of Texas, Circuit of The Americas staff and Bernie himself. I want to thank and commend Bobby Epstein for getting us across the finish line. Bobby’s perseverance and leadership kept the project on track despite unfair and unfounded criticism.”
“Our investors have believed all along that this project has tremendous benefit for our region, and provides a strong economic engine for the future,” stated Epstein, founding partner of Circuit of The Americas. “We remain committed to reaching our goal of being valuable community partners as we establish a platform for sports and entertainment. Were glad that Tavos vision of bringing F1 to the people of Texas will become a reality.”
Construction began early in 2011 on tje Circuit of The Americas, which is located 20 miles southeast of downtown Austin in Travis County on a 970-acre site two miles from Austin Bergstrom International Airport. Its signature element will be a 3.4-mile, 20-turn road circuit with capacity for 120,000 fans. The track will feature elevation changes of up to 133 feet. COTA is billed as the first purpose-built Grand Prix facility in the United States designed for any and all classes of racing, from motor power to human power.
But in the fall, the future of the track and the F1 date were put in doubt when Ecclestone told reporters that his group had not received required sanctioning fees.
In November, construction on the track was halted as COTA owners, race promoters and F1 attempted to sort through the situation.
On Wednesday, COTA reported, “Engineering and construction teams working on the track will resume immediately, ensuring completion for the 2012 race date.”
”We have a substantial number of fans who have expressed interest in buying tickets and hospitality, so today is a win for all of them as much as it is for Circuit of The Americas,” said Steve Sexton, president of Circuit of The Americas. “We encourage everyone to visit our website and register for information. Registered fans will receive the first communication regarding ticket sales plans. In a matter of weeks we will have more exciting news as we unveil our full calendar of world class events.”
Fans interested in receiving information about tickets for next year’s United States Grand Prix can register their contact information at www.CircuitofTheAmericas.com. Ticket sales information will be communicated to those registered prior to general public notification.
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