The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Bolt to get US Grand Prix under way
Usain Bolt is set to trade the running track for the race track after he was confirmed as the official starter for the United States Grand Prix.
The eight-time Olympic champion, who hung up his running spikes following August’s World Championships in London, will give the signal to Lewis Hamilton and Co to start their formation lap ahead of Sunday’s race in Austin.
Hamilton, who could clinch his fourth world championship this weekend, is set to drive Bolt around the 3.4-mile Circuit of the Americas in a Mercedesamg road car two hours before the race starts.
As part of a star-studded line-up thrown together by Formula One’s American owners Liberty Media for their first grand prix on home soil, boxing announcer Michael Buffer will introduce Hamilton and the rest of the pack one-byone on to the grid ahead of Sunday’s race.
F1’s new owners have also taken the unprecedented step of changing the sport’s schedule to accommodate a Justin Timberlake concert.
Pop star Timberlake is due to perform at the circuit on Saturday evening – and following a request by promoters of the Texas race – qualifying will be moved back by two hours. The one-hour session that determines the grid will take place at 4pm local time.
F1 fans in the UK will be forced to wait until 10pm to watch the action unfold, rather than the original 8pm start.
Hamilton heads Sebastian Vettel in the title race by 59 points and will seal his third championship in four years if he wins on Sunday and his rival finishes sixth or lower.