Source : @F1
AUSTIN — Formula 1’s stars rolled into the Circuit of The Americas paddock on Thursday for media day at the United States Grand Prix, and the sport captured the arrivals in a fast-moving montage of paddock fashion and Texan flair.
The official Formula 1 X account posted the 19-second clip on Thursday (Oct 22) with the caption: “Our stars in Texas”, alongside the hashtags #F1 and #USGP. Set to music, with the on-screen caption “Media day in Austin”, the video follows a series of drivers walking through the paddock under clear blue skies past photographers and fans.
Among those featured are Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, in a red team shirt and loose grey cargo trousers, and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso, who stops for the camera in a double-breasted olive suit and sunglasses. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli strolls past in a brown cap and a black T-shirt bearing his green “Kimi” signature, while other drivers arrive in team kit, denim jackets and caps. The clip ends with a member of the paddock in a pink shirt and white cowboy hat riding through on a kick scooter.
The Western theme runs through the weekend. According to Motorsport.com, Red Bull, Cadillac, Williams, Haas and others have launched special Austin collections, from denim jackets and cowboy hats to Godzilla-themed kit. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar will race in white suits inspired by the Ford Raptor and the American West, and Verstappen’s one-off helmet features his lion emblem wearing a cowboy hat. Mercedes and Audi have opted for special adidas Austin caps.
Thursday’s media commitments also produced plenty of talking points. In the drivers’ press conference, Hamilton joked that his only advice for Antonelli was to “slow down”, before saying the Italian “doesn’t need any advice” and “deserves to be the champion”, according to the FIA transcript. Alpine’s Franco Colapinto drew a crowd by arriving in the paddock aboard a Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP bike, ahead of a MotoGP demonstration run at the circuit on Saturday.
The title fight gives the weekend extra edge. Antonelli leads the standings on 340 points, 102 clear of Mercedes team-mate George Russell, with Hamilton third on 229 and Verstappen fourth on 221. The Italian will be crowned in Austin if he wins the race, with Russell ninth or lower and Hamilton fifth or lower, which would make him the youngest champion in Formula 1 history.
Organisers expect a crowd of more than 400,000 fans across the event, according to MotoGP, which will bring four of its machines to the circuit for the first time during a Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend. Alonso, a two-time world champion, sits 17th in the standings on seven points. Austin is the opening round of another triple header, with the Mexico City Grand Prix following next weekend.
The United States Grand Prix runs from Oct 23 to 25, with qualifying at 4pm local time on Saturday and the 56-lap race starting at 3pm on Sunday, which is 4am on Monday (Oct 26) in Malaysia. The original Formula 1 post can be viewed on X: https://x.com/F1/status/2113353967858024512.
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