World Rallycross coming to COTA in 2018 in 5-year deal
Circuit of the Americas will sign a five-year deal to bring World Rallycross to Austin starting in 2018, track officials confirmed Monday. The FIA World RX event is tentatively scheduled for the weekend of Sept. 29-30.
“It will be the first-ever U.S. stop for these guys, and we think it adds a nice variety to our racing menu,” COTA chairman Bobby Epstein said.
World Rallycross visited Canada this season, but most of its dozen race weekends are in Europe. The 2017 season is scheduled to conclude Nov. 10 in South Africa.
Epstein said a stadium will be built between turns 12 and 15 to accommodate fans who want to get close to the action. Only a portion of COTA’s 3.4-mile layout will be needed for World Rallycross, and a mixed-surface layout will be installed in the stadium area.
World RX, divided into four classes, consists of a series
Track chairman Bobby Epstein, taking a cue from other F1 venues, no longer releases attendance numbers, but he was more than pleased with the weekend, which included concerts by Justin Timberlake and Stevie Wonder along with 30 Texas bands, marching bands from Prairie View A&M and Texas State, the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders and Michael Buffer’s “let’s get ready to rumble” driver intros.
“Easily the best U.S. Grand Prix,” Epstein told the Amer- ican-Statesman. “The crowds were incredible, the racing fierce and the experience off the charts.
“The thunderstorm in the morning scared off some of our walk-up general-admission crowd (Sunday), but we did terrific with premium seating and sold out most of our grandstands. People had picnics and stayed on the grounds. I am thrilled.”
When COTA was still releasing crowd counts, it reported a track-record total of 269,889 fans for the three- day weekend in 2016.
Formula One owners are pushing more of the circuits to ratchet up the entertainment to give their grand prixes a Super Bowl or Final Four-like feel.
“We need more energy off the grid, and COTA sets a good example. I want the three- and four-day festi- of short races — four to six laps — in souped-up sports cars with high horsepower and torque. There is a playoff-style format.
“World RX is such a favorite with the younger audi- ence,” Epstein said. “It’s also great for people with a short attention span like me. Lots of short, quick races.”
COTA has held Rallycross events in the past on a temporary circuit at the 2014 and 2015 X Games Austin.
“The United States has been on our radar since we began in 2014, and we’ve been in contact with a number of cities,” World RX managing director Paul Bellamy told autosport.com. “COTA shared our vision and can deliver a key objective of building a first-class rallycross facility.”
Two other motorsports series — IMSA WeatherTech and WEC Lone Star Le Mans — previously dropped off the 2018 COTA calendar. vals,” F1 managing director Sean Bratches told the Statesman last Friday. “We’re very fortunate in Austin to have Bobby Epstein, an individ- ual who understands the dynamic of marketing and spectacle. (COTA chief oper- ating officer) Katja Heim is a total rock star and a master at promoting.
“We’re going to draft off each other.”
Not all drivers were swept up in the party atmosphere or extended pre-race activities at COTA.
“For the people, it might be nice. For me, I don’t really care,” said Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who finished sec- ond Sunday. “I like jumping in the car and racing. I’m not a big showman.”
Vettel is not interested in his German home track, Hockenheim, adding COTA’s bells and whistles.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said. “Germans are very difficult to get excited. Americans appreciate that sort of atmosphere and entertainment a lot more.”
Epstein said he heard good things not just from Hamilton but from racing teams in the middle and back of the F1 pack.
“The teams love coming to Texas, and our community has made them feel so welcome,” he said. “It took a few years for Austin to fully embrace the grand prix, but it’s finally happened.”
Week 7 had its share of disappointing performances, with three teams being shut out, but there were some big days by the usual suspects.
Ezekiel Elliott finally put a complete game together as the Cowboys trounced the 49ers 40-10. He rushed 26 times for 147 yards and two touchdowns. He only had one catch, but he took it 72 yards for a score as he tightroped the sideline and cut back to get into the end zone.
Despite having the top performance of the week, Elliott’s future remains very much in question. He’s going to play Week 8, but after that his status is up in the air.
In that same game, Dak Prescott accounted for four touchdowns. He’s a muststart every week. If Elliott can stay on the field, Prescott’s value will stay high.
The quarterback t hat had the best week played on Thursday night. Derek Carr threw for 417 yards and three touchdowns. Two scores went to Amari Cooper, who finally had a big game. He caught 11 passes for 210 yards.
The Raiders kept their season alive with a big win and it could possibly spark bet- ter play all around. Tight end Jared Cook is starting to earn a reputation as a big-play receiver. He had six recep- tions for 104 yards, includ- ing a sideline catch to set up the winning score. Michael Crabtree continued to play well, catching the winning touchdown.
Also playing Thursday night, Tyreek Hill caught six pas s es fo r 125 yards and a touchdown. And a week doesn’t go by without Kareem Hunt gaining over 100 yards from scrimmage.
LeSean McCoy, Aaron Jones and T.J. Yeldon all had big weeks as well. McCoy totaled 122 yards and scored twice. Jones rushed for over 100 yards, including a 46-yard score, for the sec- ond time in three weeks as he continues to be the go-to back for the Packers.
Yeldon put up great numbers when it was expected that Chris Ivory would be the beneficiary of Leonard Fournette missing the game. Ivory was decent and had the bulk of the carries, but Yeldon rushed just nine times for 122 yards and a touchdown.
That said, there’s really no reason to pick up Yeldon with the Jaguars’ bye week coming up and Fournette expected back in Week 9.
Speaking of the Jaguars, their defense pitched a shut- out, as did the Rams and Chargers.
The Rams blanked the Cardinals and severely jeopar- dized Arizona’s season as they knocked out Carson Palmer with a broken arm.
The Palmer injury will be a big blow to the value of Larry Fitzgerald, who had just three catches for 29 yards Sunday. It also makes me wonder if the Cardinals will hold out David Johnson once he’s healthy if their season is beyond saving.
The worst nightmare came true for fantasy owners of Packers receivers. Davante Adams, Randall Cobb and Jordy Nelson combined for five catches and just 40 yards a week after Aaron Rodgers went down to injury.
Anyone who picked up Brett Hundley thinking he’d be somewhat adequate was severely disappointed. He threw for 87 yards and one interception though he did rush for 44 yards and a touch- down.
Another disappointing quarterback this week was Matt Ryan. He had a great matchup with a struggling Patriots defense and finished with 233 yards passing and one touchdown.
Ryan’s regression is real and he’s looking like he did
Kenny Stills, WR, Dolphins: 6 rec., 85 yards, 2 TDs. He’s played well with quarterback Matt Moore in the past.
Ted Ginn, WR, Saints: 7 rec., 141 yards. He’s had two quality games in a row and Drew Brees can utilize a speedster.
Latavius Murray, RB, Vikings: 18 rushes, 113 yards, TD. Jerick McKinnon was the hot name last week, and the duo was virtually even in touches, but Murray had the most success.
Deonte Thompson, WR, Bills: He hasn’t been with the team for a week yet and he’s already proving to be valuable. He caught four passes for 104 yards Sunday.
Matt Moore, QB, Dolphins: Jay Cutler is out and Moore can be productive as a streaming QB.
O.J. Howard, TE, Buccaneers: 6 rec., 98 yards, 2 TDs.