Circuit of the Americas Formula 1 Race Track - Page 127

turn1 · #**2521** Posted **Jul 8, 2020, 11:45 PM**

Yep, I'm pretty sure F1 has already followed suit, behind the scenes...

hookem · #**2522** Posted **Jul 9, 2020, 1:21 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by StoOgE

F1 will follow suit. There is no good reason to expose any of the teams to the US at this point in time.

And a hotspot in the US to boot.

txtriathlete · #**2523** Posted **Jul 9, 2020, 1:46 PM**

Finally someone is putting COTA to good use during this pandemic!

https://youtu.be/5-3ouosW9IA

turn1 · #**2524** Posted **Jul 10, 2020, 5:06 PM**

Auto, Motor, und Sport:

F1 European Triple Header in October, with Portimao, Hockenheim, or Imola likely taking COTA's USGP slot. American GPs very unlikely. China already canceled:
https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/...hland-oktober/

lonewolf · #**2525** Posted **Jul 10, 2020, 6:58 PM**

i'm gonna say it... moto GP will be back. but i am going to be mildly surprised if Austin ever hosts another f1 auto race.

Tornado · #**2526** Posted **Jul 10, 2020, 9:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by lonewolf

i'm gonna say it... moto GP will be back. but i am going to be mildly surprised if Austin ever hosts another f1 auto race.

I think Austin will host again. The track needs an infusion of money but its a great layout and I'll state it again...Austin is an F1 city. The drivers love it and the fans love it.

Dream Sequence · #**2527** Posted **Jul 10, 2020, 9:49 PM**

It would be cool if we got the Tesla factory and there was some sort of electric vehicle type race/event.

hookem · #**2528** Posted **Jul 11, 2020, 3:20 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dream Sequence

It would be cool if we got the Tesla factory and there was some sort of electric vehicle type race/event.

There is Formula E, but I have no idea if Tesla is interested at all in it.

turn1 · #**2529** Posted **Jul 11, 2020, 5:16 PM**

COTA chairman: Formula 1 race 'in serious jeopardy'
https://www.statesman.com/sports/202...-jeopardyrsquo

In other news, water is wet.

turn1 · #**2530** Posted **Jul 15, 2020, 4:26 PM**

Just heard that when people call COTA about refunds for MotoGP 2020, COTA is trying to keep their money by telling them that they are 'locked in' for 2021. LOL. As if anything is 'locked in' in the current environment. MotoGP 2021 at COTA is just 9 months away. It's anything but a given that it will happen.

And wtf do they even mean by 'locked in'? Hell, as far as that goes, I'm 'locked in', too. No Moto GP race at COTA has ever come even REMOTELY close to a sellout. "Locked in". LOLOLOL.

turn1 · #**2531** Posted **Jul 15, 2020, 5:07 PM**

... and now COTA has removed all phone numbers from their 'Contact Us' page and have moved to email-only communications re: refunds for cancellations and postponements. If you want to talk to a real person about your MotoGP, IndyCar, or Rolling Stones refund, you're outta luck.

turn1 · #**2532** Posted **Jul 24, 2020, 2:59 AM**

RACER: Imola, Nurburgring and Portimao set to join 2020 F1 calendar, taking Japan, U.S., and Mexico dates (Oct 11, 25, Nov 1)

https://racer.com/2020/07/23/imola-n...0-f1-calendar/

ETA: Hearing now that there may be an announcement tomorrow re: Austin & maybe 1 more ...

turn1 · #**2533** Posted **Jul 24, 2020, 1:50 PM**

Welp ...

Autosport: F1 set to abandon Americas plans in 2020 https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/15...-plans-in-2020

Formula 1: US, Mexican & Brazilian races will not go ahead in 2020 https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/53527355

Formula 1 confirms it’s not possible to race in Brazil, USA, Mexico and Canada in 2020

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...s3T8BbIQS.html

StoOgE · #**2534** Posted **Jul 24, 2020, 4:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by turn1

Just heard that when people call COTA about refunds for MotoGP 2020, COTA is trying to keep their money by telling them that they are 'locked in' for 2021. LOL. As if anything is 'locked in' in the current environment. MotoGP 2021 at COTA is just 9 months away. It's anything but a given that it will happen.

And wtf do they even mean by 'locked in'? Hell, as far as that goes, I'm 'locked in', too. No Moto GP race at COTA has ever come even REMOTELY close to a sellout. "Locked in". LOLOLOL.

It's extremely hard to blame a business whose entire revenue stream for the year disappeared from trying to keep money on hand.

The realities of cashflow is that they obviously had already taken a decent amount of their pre-sale tickets and used them for other expenses and overhead and did not foresee every event this year being cancelled.

Our company goes to loads of conventions annually and this is what we have been asked to do by 100% of them.

We vs us · #**2535** Posted **Jul 24, 2020, 5:04 PM**

Yes. Well- and poorly-run businesses alike in the mass-gathering sector are being vaporized by COVID. Even if COTA had done everything right -- spent conservatively, saved for a rainy day, etc -- there's no guarantee it will survive this downturn.

StoOgE · #**2536** Posted **Jul 24, 2020, 8:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by We vs us

Yes. Well- and poorly-run businesses alike in the mass-gathering sector are being vaporized by COVID. Even if COTA had done everything right -- spent conservatively, saved for a rainy day, etc -- there's no guarantee it will survive this downturn.

Yep. For sure and they may not make it through this, but I can't really fault a company on life-support from trying to keep from returning cash they may not have.

I mean, they need to give the money back if people request it, but trying to get customers to roll their cash forward seems fine with me.

turn1 · #**2537** Posted **Jul 25, 2020, 1:53 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by StoOgE

It's extremely hard to blame a business whose entire revenue stream for the year disappeared from trying to keep money on hand.

The realities of cashflow is that they obviously had already taken a decent amount of their pre-sale tickets and used them for other expenses and overhead and did not foresee every event this year being cancelled.

Our company goes to loads of conventions annually and this is what we have been asked to do by 100% of them.

Sure. I'm just laughing at the concept of telling 2020 ticket-holders that they're 'locked in' for 2021 ... as if there was ever any doubt they could get tickets for MotoGP in 2021. No MotoGP race at COTA has ever come even remotely close to a sellout. And of course, April isn't far away, so who knows if that race even happens either.

turn1 · #**2538** Posted **Jul 25, 2020, 1:55 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by StoOgE

Yep. For sure and they may not make it through this, but I can't really fault a company on life-support from trying to keep from returning cash they may not have.

I mean, they need to give the money back if people request it, but trying to get customers to roll their cash forward seems fine with me.

Yeah I have no problem with that & didn't say that. See above.

turn1 · #**2539** Posted **Jul 26, 2020, 3:03 PM**

Analysis: F1 U.S. Grand Prix at Austin Doomed Since March

https://www.autoweek.com/racing/form...VZwCPPlT5pDNiQ

Quote:

Let’s face it: The U.S. Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, was doomed since March 6, when the South by Southwest media festival was canceled when Austin mayor Steve Adler declared a “local disaster” due to concerns over the coronavirus. It was the first time in SXSW’s 34-year history the event was cancelled.

...

So anyone surprised by the cancellation last week of the race—as well as all the North American races in Canada and Mexico, and even Brazil— hasn’t been paying attention. It only makes sense, financial and otherwise, for F1 to come to North America if it can race at all three venues, and that won’t happen.

Where does this leave Circuit of the Americas? In a bad spot, according to a statement from track head Bobby Epstein, who called the cancellation “prudent but painful.” The track has also lost its other major event, the Red Bull Moto GP motorcycle race, though it has been able to host a handful of other, lesser events, such as the lightly attended FIA WEC race last February.

It's estimated that the COTA F1 sanctioning fee is between $20 and $22 million annually, covered by money from the state of Texas. But when it comes to actually making money, COTA has three income sources for the F1 race: Ticket money, secondary hospitality (tents and such, since the Paddock Club money goes to F1), and the state. TV and sponsorship money go to F1.

Had F1 insisted on running the race without spectators, the only way the track might have benefitted is renting the track to F1, or some other promoter, and that likely wasn’t going to happen.

Actually, none of it was going to happen. Aside from the Austin government mandate, travel inside and out of the U.S., for the international crowd F1 draws, would have been a nightmare. Originally, we were afraid that foreigners would bring the coronavirus here—now, those foreigners are afraid of bringing it back home from the U.S.

Oh, well. There’s always 2021. Hopefully.

turn1 · #**2540** Posted **Aug 6, 2020, 12:19 PM**

Circuit of the Americas gets its cash payment from Texas for 2019 F1 expenses
https://www.statesman.com/sports/202...19-f1-expenses

Interesting that this payment is so much later compared to the payments for earlier GPs there (usually a month or two after the GP weekend). Seems they also still haven't been paid for the 2018 USGP after their paperwork snafu.