United States Grand Prix

Unpaved roads, 65 mph, and tens of thousands watching; America meant business from the very first lap.

The first race to carry the title of a United States Grand Prix was the American Grand Prize, held on a 25.13-mile road course through the streets and surrounding countryside of Savannah, Georgia. It followed the Vanderbilt Cup races that had begun on Long Island in 1904, establishing America as a serious player in international motorsport. Louis Wagner won that inaugural race in a Fiat, averaging over 65 mph on unpaved roads. Tens of thousands of spectators lined the course. Grand Prix racing in America had begun.

On the final lap at Sebring, Brabham pushed his Cooper-Climax across the finish line by hand to clinch the 1959 World Championship.

The first Formula 1 World Championship race on American soil took place at Sebring International Raceway in Florida on 12 December 1959. Bruce McLaren, just 22 years old, won in a Cooper-Climax to become the youngest Grand Prix winner at the time. More significantly, his teammate Jack Brabham ran out of fuel on the final lap and pushed his car across the finish line in fourth place, securing enough points to clinch the World Championship.

Twenty consecutive autumns at the Glen; a stretch that turned a race into a genuine institution.

After single appearances at Sebring and Riverside, the United States Grand Prix found a proper home at Watkins Glen in upstate New York. The circuit, nestled in the Finger Lakes region, would host the race for 20 consecutive years. Innes Ireland won the first running for Lotus, the team's maiden Grand Prix victory. The Glen became a favourite among drivers. Fast, flowing, and set against the autumn colours of New York State, it offered a character quite unlike anything else on the calendar. The annual October date became a fixture that teams and fans genuinely looked forward to.

Six weeks after nearly losing his life, Lauda was back racing; Hunt seized his moment at the Glen.

The 1976 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen was the penultimate round of one of Formula 1's most storied seasons. James Hunt won the race, closing the gap to Niki Lauda, who had made his remarkable return to racing just six weeks after his near-fatal Nürburgring crash. The championship would go down to the wire in Japan.

Formula 1 vanished from American soil for nine years after debts and decay ended Watkins Glen's run.

Financial difficulties and deteriorating facilities brought the Watkins Glen era to a close after the 1980 race, won by Alan Jones. The circuit had struggled with safety upgrades and mounting debts. Formula 1 would not return to the United States for nine years, the longest absence in the championship's American history.

Over 200,000 spectators packed Indianapolis in 2000, the largest crowd Formula 1 had ever drawn.

After a brief stint in Phoenix (1989-1991), the United States Grand Prix made a high-profile return at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2000. A new infield section was built to complement the famous oval's Turn 1 banking. Michael Schumacher won the inaugural race, and the race drew over 200,000 spectators, the largest crowd in F1 history at the time.

Fourteen cars peeled away before a single lap was run; six remained to salvage what little sport was left.

The 2005 United States Grand Prix became one of Formula 1's most infamous occasions. After a tyre failure during practice, all 14 Michelin-shod cars withdrew before the start, leaving just six Bridgestone-equipped cars to race. The spectacle of 14 cars peeling into the pit lane on the formation lap, in front of a packed house, was a public relations disaster that severely damaged F1's reputation in America. Michael Schumacher won the farcical race. The weekend limped on for two more years before Indianapolis dropped off the calendar after 2007.

A circuit born purely for Formula 1, COTA's 133-foot climb to Turn 1 announced America's return with unmistakable ambition.

After a five-year absence, Formula 1 returned to America at the purpose-built Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. Designed by Hermann Tilke, the 3.426-mile circuit features 20 turns, including the dramatic uphill run to Turn 1 with its 133-foot elevation change. Lewis Hamilton won the inaugural race, beating Sebastian Vettel. The venue was a statement of intent. Unlike previous American F1 experiments that adapted existing circuits, COTA was built from scratch specifically for Formula 1. The observation tower at Turn 1, visible from across the facility, became an instant landmark.

Six wins from eight races at COTA; Hamilton did not so much visit the circuit as own it.

Lewis Hamilton won his fifth United States Grand Prix at COTA in 2017, clinching his fourth World Championship in the process. His dominance at the circuit became a defining feature of the modern era. Hamilton would go on to win six of the first eight races at COTA, a record of consistency unmatched by any driver at any other venue on the calendar.

Four hundred and forty thousand fans in a single weekend; America did not merely adopt Formula 1, it overwhelmed it.

The United States Grand Prix at COTA now sits alongside the Miami and Las Vegas Grands Prix, giving America three races on the F1 calendar for the first time. The Netflix series Drive to Survive, which debuted in 2019, transformed American interest in the sport. Attendance at COTA regularly exceeds 400,000 across the race weekend, with the 2023 edition drawing a record 440,000 fans over three days. The sprint race format, introduced at COTA in 2021, adds an extra competitive dimension to the weekend. Austin has become the anchor of F1's American expansion, the race that proved the sport could thrive in the United States when given the right venue and the right moment.